Into the Dark
by Kristen Elizabeth
Summary: "He killed his friends, his superiors...his lover." The final mystery of Uchiha Itachi lies with the woman he loved. Itachi/OC
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Bear with me. Being late to the Naruto bandwagon, I am just now mourning the death of Itachi, and the only way for me to deal with grief is to write. If you are also following my other Naruto fic, a new chapter will be coming, but I've had to hold off on it for awhile, until I reach a point in the series when I can write it with greater knowledge and detail.

Fortunately, I know everything I need to in order to finish this story. So, I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

**Into the Dark**

**by Kristen Elizabeth**

* * *

_Love of mine, someday you will die_

_But I'll be close behind..._

_- Death Cab for Cutie_

* * *

The air was thick with black fire and concrete dust. He could feel the mixture entering his damaged lungs, threatening to cut short the few breaths he had left. His entire existence had come down to a battle between the disease overtaking his body and the power of his will to keep going until he reached Sasuke...but even Uchiha Itachi knew when he'd been defeated.

His bloody fingers pressed against Sasuke's unprotected forehead. He'd been disappointed to see that Sasuke had done away with his hitaiate (he had never been able to part with his own last link to the village of his birth), but right then, he was glad that he could feel the warmth of his little brother's skin. With that last moment of human contact, Itachi gave in...gave up...let go.

He didn't feel the standing stone wall slam against his head. It was a slow slide to a hard resting place, but he was beyond physical pain. Rolling onto his back, Itachi stared up at the grey sky without blinking.

Mission accomplished.

Had he possessed the strength, he would have smiled one last time. Sasuke was alive and strong, and all his brother had to do was look at Tobi with the new power Itachi's death would give him, and the last loose end of the sad tale of the Uchihas would be tied up. Sasuke would be the hero of the Hidden Leaf, free to live a long and happy life. Perhaps in time he would marry, have children, and start a new legacy for their clan. Everything Itachi had sacrificed...his mother, his father, Shisui, his reputation, his ideals, his very life...it would not be in vain.

Her death would not be in vain.

As his vision tunneled, Itachi could see her face, not pale and lifeless as it had been the last time he'd held her, but as it had been on a spring day so many years earlier, half-hidden behind a paper fan...beautiful, but just out of his reach.

_Emiko..._

* * *

**Nine Years Earlier**

Out of the corner of his eye, Itachi could see Sasuke's small silhouette against the paper screen door that separated the room in which he was dressing from the open-air corridor that ran the perimeter of the courtyard. As he knotted the ties on his grey hakama pants, he smiled to himself.

"You may come in, Sasuke," he told his little brother through the thin rice screen.

Sasuke wasted no time sliding the door open and poking his dark head inside. "Nii-san!" He immediately pouted upon seeing Itachi still dressing. "Aren't you ready yet?"

"Almost." Itachi reached for his black silk montsuki kimono, adorned with the Uchiha crest, and pulled it on. The sleeves barely touched his wrists, as the style dictated, but he tugged on them anyway, trying to stretch them further. After a moment, he gave up. "This will have to do."

Dressed in a miniature copy of Itachi's own formal attire, Sasuke watched his brother carefully. "Nii-san, do you want to get married?"

"I'm not getting married," Itachi said. "Not yet. This is just the yuinou."

Sasuke's scowl grew deeper, like it always did when he was corrected. "But it means you're going to get married."

Itachi stepped into his sandals. "Someday."

Sooner rather than later, he feared, especially now that he had been accepted into ANBU. The danger of the Black Ops assignments on which he would be sent would only push up the date of the marriage his parents had arranged for him. Their line of the Uchiha clan had to be carried on, before any mission could claim his life.

His little brother folded his arms with great superiority. "I'm never getting married," he announced. "They can't make me."

"Oh?" Sasuke shook his head, his nose turned up in the air, prompting Itachi to ask, "What if you got to choose for yourself? Someone you knew and liked?"

He nearly laughed at the face his brother made at this suggestion. "I don't like any girls!"

That wouldn't be true forever. There were already girls in the village who chased after Sasuke. He might have been able to avoid the attention as Itachi had, with polite, yet distant smiles, but Sasuke's response to squealing little girls with pink or blonde hair was to run away from them, which only made him more of a challenge. Eventually, though, he wouldn't mind being caught.

"Maybe you'll feel differently in a few years."

Sasuke was gearing up for a loud protest when their father suddenly appeared behind him. Even without turning around, his brother could sense his presence and immediately closed his mouth.

"It's time." Fugaku looked his eldest son up and down, inspecting him for any fault or flaw. Finding none, he folded his arms with satisfaction. "This is a good match, Itachi. The girl comes from a strong branch of the clan. I have no doubt she'll give you sons who will make you proud."

Considering it was the closest they'd ever come to a personal conversation, Itachi merely inclined his chin.

"Otou-san," Sasuke piped up, beaming when his father acknowledged him with a brief glance. "When nii-san gets married, will he still live here with us?"

"No." Sasuke's smile disappeared. Oblivious to this, Fugaku continued, "He'll have his own house."

"Nearby," Itachi added, for Sasuke's sake.

"Sasuke, go join your mother in the courtyard," Fugaku ordered. With his pout firmly back in place, Sasuke did as he was told, leaving them alone. A moment passed before his father spoke again. "I realize you're young, Itachi, maybe too young for marriage, but..." He stopped, as if he wasn't sure what he wanted to say anymore.

"Otou-san." Itachi bowed his head slightly. "I understand."

Fugaku nodded, but even though Itachi had given in, he went on, like he needed to say more to convince his son. "I think you'll find your bride very agreeable. In every way."

The implication hung in the air between them until Itachi cleared his throat. "Should we go?"

With a curt nod, Fugaku turned around. Itachi followed him out the door and into the sunshine and fresh air of the courtyard around which their home was built. A small group was already gathered at the edge of the koi pond. His mother smiled as her husband and son approached; Mikoto held Sasuke against the flower pattern on the silk skirt of her kimono, one hand on his shoulder to keep him in line.

Itachi recognized the clan's elders, as well as the senior members of his family's branch, his grandfather and his uncles. As he took his place in front of the pond, he noticed his friend, Shisui, standing just behind the other men, his arms folded across his flak jacket. Itachi smiled at the statement his friend was making by not donning formal clothes to celebrate his engagement.

_I've got nothing against marriage_, he recalled Shisui saying when Itachi invited him to the yuinou. _But just because the Hokage thinks you're old enough to be in ANBU, doesn't mean you have any business starting a family at your age. _Shisui had shaken his head, as if disgusted by the decisions of their clan. _They've already taken your childhood. I guess they won't be happy until you're an old man living in a teenager's body._

Sensing motion at the far end of the courtyard, Itachi turned his head to see a small procession emerging from one of the house's many empty rooms. Led by a priest flanked on either side by two monks, his future bride was surrounded by her family members, to the point where he couldn't even tell which one of the many bowed heads belonged to her.

They came to a stop a few feet away from where Itachi and Fugaku stood. A tall man with a rugged, scarred face stepped forward, but rather than approach Itachi, he bowed to Itachi's father.

"Fugaku-san, I humbly offer my daughter to be joined in marriage with your eldest son," his bride's father said, "for the benefit and continuation of the Uchiha clan."

Fugaku gestured and, seemingly out of nowhere, several lower members of the clan's ranks appeared bearing the required gifts. "I accept your sacrifice with offerings of my own."

As he didn't seem to have any part in the negotiations, Itachi let his gaze wander over the unfamiliar faces in front of him, searching for the girl who would be his wife and the mother of his children. He immediately dismissed several candidates based on either the grey streaks in their hair or the color and style of their kimono, which indicated they were already married.

Of the remaining females, one in particular stood out. From the moment his eyes landed on her, Itachi's mouth felt dry.

Her glossy hair was the color of deeply stained wood, almost too dark to be called brown. She wore a light pink kimono decorated in a delicate pattern of white cherry blossoms, accented by a wide red obi that did nothing to hide the slenderness of her waist. Her sleeves were long and wide, but he could see just a bit of her pale arm as she held a folded paper fan up to her face.

All he could see was a flash of her amber eyes before she realized she was being watched and quickly looked down. Something sparked in the center of Itachi's chest and the ensuing warmth spread like wildfire through the rest of his body. He swallowed back a sudden lump in his throat.

Perhaps marriage wouldn't be such a burden if it meant he would belong to a woman as beautiful as her.

"Uchiha Itachi." It was all Itachi could do to tear his eyes away from the girl in the pink kimono. He looked at his bride's father, barely remembering to bow in acknowledgement. The man nodded before gesturing to the women behind him. "Your future wife, Akane."

He held his breath, waiting for her to step forward...but his heart sank only a moment later. Instead of the girl who had captured his attention with a single look, another girl shuffled towards him. Her kimono was just as elaborate, but although they shared some features, Uchiha Akane paled in comparison to the girl standing next to her.

Itachi froze. To show any disappointment would shame his family and bring dishonor to the entire clan. He extended a cold, numb hand to Akane and forced himself not to look over her shoulder when she placed her own, slightly damp palm in his.

Facing the priest, Itachi barely heard, much less understood the words of the blessing that sealed his fate and promised his heart to someone who would never have it.

* * *

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Because at least two people liked this story enough to want to read the next chapter, and because it's a story I really, really want to tell, I forged on with it. Thank you to those two people; you made all the difference to me.

* * *

**Into the Dark**

**by Kristen Elizabeth**

* * *

_And I held my tongue as she told me,_

_"Son, fear is the heart of love."_

* * *

It surprised Itachi how little being engaged changed his life. Even with a wedding looming in the future, his days proceeded as before: training, missions, apologizing to Sasuke and clan meetings, with just enough sleep thrown into the mix to keep him alive.

He hadn't seen Akane since the day of their yuinou, but thanks to his mother's efforts, he had learned a bit more about her. She was his age, but had enrolled in the Academy the year after he'd graduated, which explained why they'd never crossed paths before. According to Mikoto, she was a gifted student and had already accessed her Sharingan, a considerable feat for a woman at all, especially one so young.

It was little wonder then why the match had been made, but even understanding the reasoning behind it couldn't make Itachi stop thinking about the other girl at the yuinou. He knew it was unfair to his future bride, and he had every intention of carrying through with his duty, but even the mighty Uchiha clan couldn't control his mind or his heart.

Still, he endured the congratulations on his engagement, as if he'd had some part in it, and he tried to smile when clan members he barely knew slapped him on the back and made blatant insinuations about the importance of him having strong sons as soon as possible. It wasn't the first time in his life that he'd felt like the property of his clan, but it was a fresh level of dehumanization. In some of the elders' eyes, he was no better than a prize stallion.

Itachi found solace in only two things: his ANBU missions and the small amount of time he got to spend with his little brother. Sasuke had grown at least two inches in the four months since the engagement. He soaked up knowledge like a sponge, determined to be equals with Itachi, something Itachi hoped he never settled for.

He didn't want Sasuke to be the same as him; he wanted his brother to be much better.

As for the ANBU, he'd been aware that the unprecedented success of his missions wasn't going unnoticed by the Hokage, but he hadn't expected, when he was summoned to the old man's office, that he would walk out with the heavy responsibility of being a captain.

Anyone else would have been elated to share such news with their family, but Itachi waited until the very end of their nightly meal before telling his father about his promotion.

Fugaku lowered his chopsticks and stared at his son. "They made you a captain?" he repeated.

Nodding, Itachi sipped his cooling tea. "Effective immediately."

His mother turned around at the sink, her hands full of soap bubbles. "Itachi!" she exclaimed. "That's..." She trailed off upon seeing the look on her husband's face. Subdued, she finished, "...quite an accomplishment at your age."

"Yes." The intensity in his father's eyes could have bored holes straight through him. "It is."

"I'm going to be a captain someday, too!" Sasuke declared. "Just like you, nii-san!"

For the first time since receiving the promotion, Itachi smiled. "Thank you, Sasuke." His brother's determination to emulate him was just the boy's way of expressing congratulations. He looked back at his father. "It's an honor for the Uchihas, not for me."

As he'd expected, Fukagu's expression relaxed upon hearing this. "The elders will want to know right away." He paused. "You understand the responsibility that comes with this, yes?"

Itachi met his father's stare with one of his own. "Yes."

While Sasuke tried to tell their father about his own accomplishment, how he'd almost managed to create a clone of himself during class that day, his excited chatter was lost to both men for whom it was intended.

As a member of ANBU, he'd been expected to report on the village's innermost workings, effectively making him a spy for the Uchihas, but this promotion changed things. Itachi knew it, and he sensed his father knew it, too. It meant that the Hokage trusted him and believed in his loyalty to the Hidden Leaf.

The Uchihas might not have agreed with Sarutobi Hiruzen or even liked him, but even the most loyal clan member would have been hesitant to dismiss the Hokage's instincts out of hand.

If he had faith in Itachi...it was only a matter of time before the Uchihas no longer did.

* * *

A week passed without incident, and while Itachi wasn't foolish enough to let down his guard, he did wonder if perhaps his fears had been premature. He was still invited to clan meetings and only two days after the promotion, one of the elders had remarked that if Itachi was old enough to lead an ANBU squad, he was old enough to head his own household.

Itachi could feel the yoke of his engagement, his duties, and his very future bearing down on his shoulders. Instinctively, he knew he needed a release. So when Sasuke begged to be taken to the Tanabata festival in the village, Itachi found himself unable to say no. They set out at sunset, Sasuke with warnings from their mother to behave himself, and Itachi with enough money to buy whatever his little brother wanted.

It was a good distance from the Uchiha compound to the center of Konoha and Sasuke spent the entire walk talking about his classes and complaining about how Iruka-sensei had asked him to help Uzumaki Naruto after school.

Itachi gave no indication that he recognized the name, but he did gently rebuke his brother. "It's an honor to be asked and a true ninja helps those in need."

Sasuke mulled over this until they reached the festival and his attention was torn away by the paper streamers, colorful lanterns, and crowds of people. Food and game booths lined the streets and the mingled scents of takoyaki and yakisoba sparked Itachi's long-absent hunger. He bought a plate of each and the brothers sat down on a bench to share their snack.

In the middle of slurping down a pile of noodles, Sasuke pointed out a goldfish scooping booth. "Go ahead," Itachi told him when he was done eating. He smiled and handed the boy a couple of coins. "Just don't wander off."

Grabbing the money with a grin, his little brother took off running. When he was satisfied that Sasuke had gotten to the booth without incident, Itachi sat back against the bench and looked up at the sky. As night approached, the blue of twilight turned darker and darker, bringing the stars out in a brilliant, twinkling display. Itachi took a deep breath and expelled it slowly.

"Uchiha-san."

Lowering his chin, Itachi was surprised to see Hatake Kakashi standing in front of him. Although a former ANBU himself, Kakashi had quit the Black Ops years earlier, but his reputation proceeded him. Even if he hadn't possessed the Sharingan of an Uchiha, he would have had Itachi's respect.

"Hatake-senpai," Itachi returned the greeting. "Are you enjoying the festival?"

With his hands in his pockets, the older man nodded as he looked around. "It's a good night for one." A moment passed. "I suppose I should congratulate you on your promotion."

It didn't surprise Itachi that the Copy Ninja was still in the loop when it came to ANBU. "I'd be honored if you did."

Kakashi's gaze finally returned to him. "Then...I'm sorry I can't."

Itachi nodded his understanding. "Many people believe I'm too young for the position."

"I'm not one of them." He thought he saw Kakashi smile sadly underneath his mask. "But I don't envy you, either." Pulling one hand from his pocket, the silver-haired jonin waved as he walked away. "Good luck, Uchiha Itachi."

As he pondered the strange and random conversation, Itachi suddenly remembered his brother, but when he looked at the goldfish scooping booth, Sasuke was gone.

"Sasuke," he called out, hoping to see a dark head of spiky hair peek out from behind a bush or a post. There was no response, not even a mischievous giggle. Itachi stood up. "Sasuke!"

Not completely alarmed, but a little concerned, Itachi made his way over to the booth. "Oji-san," he said to the withered man in charge of the game. "The dark-haired boy who was playing here a minute ago...did you see where he went?"

"He ran that way," the man pointed. "A couple of girls were chasing him."

Itachi sighed. "Thank you."

Making his way through the crowd, Itachi kept a sharp eye out for his little brother. His efforts paid off within minutes, as he spotted Sasuke standing off to the side of the street, in front of a ramen stand, rubbing the back of his hand over his eyes. A girl his age stood next to him, her hands sheepishly clasped together at her chest, her pink head bowed.

But it was the person kneeling in front of Sasuke that made Itachi stop in his tracks. He recognized the pattern on her pink kimono immediately.

His brother noticed him first. "Nii-san!"

The girl turned her head and the second look into her amber eyes was even more powerful than the first. Itachi blinked. He knew he needed to say something, but he couldn't think, not when he could see the rosy blush in her cheeks and the full curve of her lips.

"Nii-san," Sasuke called again, effectively jarring Itachi out of his thoughts. He looked at his little brother, suddenly noticing the bloody scrapes on the boy's knees. "Sakura and her stupid friend were chasing me and I fell." Sasuke threw an accusing scowl at the pink-haired girl.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke-kun!" the little girl cried, tears welling up in her green eyes. "I told Ino-chan we should stop, but she didn't listen to me!"

"It's all right, Sakura-chan." The older girl's voice was soft and sweet. Itachi moved forward, to see her better as she smiled at the children. He watched as the girl who had haunted his dreams put her hand close to his brother's injuries. A green glow enveloped the wounds and when the girl lowered her hand again, Sasuke's knees were completely healed, without so much as a scar. "See? Sasuke-kun is going to be fine."

Sakura and Sasuke stared at the girl in awe and Itachi found it hard not to do the same. Besides being beautiful and kind, she was a healer of considerable skill. Medical ninja were valued by all shinobi, but Itachi couldn't think of any who came from his clan. As important as it was, healing was seen as a weak skill in comparison to the Sharingan or the Fire Release.

"Sasuke," Itachi said. "You should thank her."

Sasuke immediately bowed his head. "Thank you, Emiko-san." It didn't escape Itachi's notice that Sasuke used an honorific, something he only did with people he really respected, but he didn't ponder this fact until later. Right then, Itachi was entirely focused on her name.

Emiko. Graced with beauty. It suited her perfectly.

When she started to stand from her kneeling position, Itachi moved to her side and offered her his hand. She blinked up at him before smiling and placing her hand in his. Her palm was warm and soft and delicate.

"Thank you, Itachi-sama."

He shook his head. "I should thank you. For taking care of my brother."

"I just happened to be nearby," Emiko politely dodged his gratitude. "Anyone would have done the same, especially for a member of their clan."

"Emiko-san, you're a member of the Uchihas?" Sakura asked.

Emiko smiled. "Yes. My sister, Akane, is engaged to marry Itachi-sama."

Sisters. Itachi should have guessed. Had there been a slight catch in Emiko's voice, though, or was it just his imagination tricking him into believing that she might look at him the same way he was looking at her?

"I can't wait to get married!" Sakura exclaimed.

Sasuke folded his arms and snorted. "Who would ever want to marry you?"

Before the pink-haired girl could burst into tears or punch his brother in the face...and honestly Itachi had no idea which option she might choose...someone called Emiko's name. She and Itachi turned at the same time, only to see Akane approaching with a woman Itachi recognized as his future mother-in-law.

"Itachi-sama!" Akane immediately bowed. It took her mother a moment to follow suit...a moment she used to narrow her eyes at Emiko. His intended bride straightened up. "What a surprise to see you here."

Now that they were together, Itachi could see the great resemblance between the two girls, yet they couldn't have been more different. Akane's eyes were the same color, but they were colder than Emiko's. They were eyes that possessed the Sharingan. Her hair was also shorter, cut for practicality in battle. She had none of her sister's curves; her body was compact and muscled, no doubt the product of years of intense training.

There was nothing wrong with Akane, but if Emiko was the sun, Itachi's bride was a distant star.

"Emiko." Their mother's tone was sharp. "Why are you bothering Itachi-sama?"

Itachi frowned, proud to note that Sasuke did the same. "I'm not bothered, Oba-san." The woman looked like she wanted to bristle at being addressed as one would a grandmother, but considering who Itachi was, she couldn't. "My brother was injured and Emiko-san healed his wounds. We are in her debt."

"I tried to tell Itachi-sama that it was nothing," Emiko murmured. Her smile was gone now, and she'd lowered her chin, hiding her eyes from view.

Her mother ignored her. "Perhaps, Itachi-sama, you would like to watch the fireworks with us." She looked at Akane. "It would give you and Akane a chance to talk."

He could have refused on the basis that he'd promised to spend the festival with his brother, but he couldn't avoid Akane forever. Plus, being around Akane meant being around her sister. Learning her name and her ninja skill wasn't enough. He wanted to know more. Everything. What she liked or didn't like, what her hobbies were...whether she was promised to someone else.

So, Itachi accepted the invitation and spent the next two hours alternating between keeping an eye on his brother and trying to muster up even the smallest amount of interest in Akane's long list of accomplishments, while all he wanted to do was talk to the girl who trailed behind them like she was a servant.

Emiko was silent, save for one precious moment when the first burst of colored light illuminated the sky. Itachi watched her out of the corner of his eye as she gasped in delight. Her smile made some unidentifiable part of him ache in a way he'd never experienced before. His throat closed up as he tried to swallow.

She must have felt his stare because she turned her head ever so slightly towards him. He couldn't look away. She might not have had the Sharingan, but he was caught in genjutsu from which he never wanted to wake. No words passed between them, but it was all Itachi needed to know that he wasn't alone in his interest.

* * *

After the fireworks and the long walk back to the compound, the brothers parted ways with the women at the gate. Itachi watched until they were out of sight, hoping Emiko might look back a them, but when she didn't, he hauled a very sleepy Sasuke onto his back and turned towards their house.

"Nii-san?" Sasuke mumbled against Itachi's high collar. "Emiko-san is pretty, isn't she?"

"Yes," Itachi said after a long moment. "She's very pretty." He forced himself to smile. "I thought you didn't like any girls."

"I don't!" Sasuke protested. He was quiet for a second. "But I think...if I ever did...I could like someone like her."

Itachi waited until his brother's breath evened out, a sure sign that he'd drifted off, before he quietly replied, "You wouldn't be alone, otou-chan."

* * *

TBC


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: I just wanted to thank ju-crom, BlowYouAway, Guilty Ink and itachifan01 for reading and reviewing the last chapter. I intend to keep going no matter what because I really want to tell this story, but it's always easier to keep going when you get to hear what people think about it:) I hope whoever reads this chapter will enjoy themselves and come back for more!

* * *

**Into the Dark**

**by Kristen Elizabeth**

* * *

_In Catholic school, vicious as Roman rule,_

_I got my knuckles bruised by a lady in black..._

* * *

"Something's changed, Itachi." Hunched over the old stone railing on the curved bridge, Shisui stared at his watery reflection in the Naka River. "I don't know what it is just yet, but something's different now."

Itachi said nothing for a long moment, unable to tell whether he should continue the conversation or change the subject. He trusted Shisui implicitly, but he was still an Uchiha, and his loyalties weren't torn like Itachi's were. Perhaps he wouldn't understand Itachi's meetings with the Hokage and the village elders. He might even report them to the clan.

Fortunately, Shisui's short attention span saved Itachi from having to make that choice. Turning around so his back was against the railing, he crossed his arms and leered. "So! Have they decided on a date for your wedding yet?"

Suddenly, he would have rather discussed politics. "Not that I've been told."

"But it's still on?" Itachi inclined his chin. "I can tell you're thrilled. What's wrong?" Shisui pressed. "She's not bad to look at and I hear she's pretty talented on the training field. If she can cook halfway decently, maybe it won't be so bad."

Standing on the other side of the narrow bridge, Itachi shook his head. "She's not the problem." He paused. "Or maybe she is. Only...it's not her fault."

"You're gonna have to give me more than that."

"I can't."

Shisui frowned. "Come on, Itachi. You know whatever you say stays with me."

After taking another moment to make what seemed like an even bigger decision, Itachi walked to his side of the bridge. "What do you know about that branch of the clan?"

"Your bride's? Not much. Their leader...Hideo..." Shisui snorted. "He's pretty much a bastard. Not that that distinguishes him from anyone else around here."

"That's her father," Itachi mused. "Their father."

Shisui continued, "Yeah, I think I heard he has two daughters."

"Akane and Emiko."

His expression, his tone...they gave him away and he knew it the second Shisui looked at him with more than just a little curiosity. "I didn't even know the other one's name," his friend confessed. "To hear Hideo talk, you'd think there was just one."

Itachi stared into the river. "Why is that?"

"I always got the impression the other one was pretty weak."

"Medical ninja aren't weak," Itachi frowned. "They have incredible chakra control. It's a gift that should never be taken lightly."

Shisui cleared his throat a bit too loudly. "I feel like I should be asking the questions since you seem to have all the answers." When Itachi looked away, he didn't see his friend smirk. "Now I'm curious to meet this Emiko..."

He regretted sneaking a peek at Itachi's face a second later. All he saw was red and black. Later, he considered himself lucky that Itachi hadn't gone any further to get the message through: Emiko was off-limits.

Shisui blew out a shaky breath when Itachi's eyes slipped back to their original color. "She must be pretty," he decided. "This is a side of you I haven't seen before."

Itachi didn't blink. "I should go. I'm still expected for dinner."

Without waiting for a reply, Itachi walked off, hands in his pockets, chin down.

* * *

He kept going until he was well out of his friend's sight, but when he reached a fork in the road, he hesitated.

Not knowing what to do was an unfamiliar feeling for a ninja on his level, but this wasn't a battle or even a training session where a moment's pause meant death. One way led home, to his mother's soft smile, his brother's endless questions and his father's ever-watchful eyes. But the other way led to another house, the home of Uchiha Hideo and his family.

He wouldn't see her, Itachi told himself. The sun was getting ready to set; she was most likely inside already. But if she wasn't, how would he explain his presence? The only business he had with that branch was through Akane. He couldn't exactly say that he'd gone out of his way to see someone other than his future bride.

Still, knowing that wasn't enough of a deterrent, and when he stepped off the curb, he took the opposite path, heading away from his home.

Emiko's branch of the clan lived in a house that was only slightly smaller than Itachi's. As he approached, a breeze followed him, almost sweeping him along the way. The leaves overhead rustled, then died down, and when the roar over his ears passed, Itachi could hear the sweet sound of a woman humming.

There was a high stone wall around the house, hardly an obstacle as it took less than a second before Itachi was perched upon it, looking down into a lush, green garden. Amidst the flowering bushes, stone pagodas, and bamboo water spouts, he located the source of the humming. Immediately, his expression relaxed.

Emiko had exchanged her formal kimono for a pair of tan pants that clung to her curves and a loose, cream-colored yukata that belted around her waist; the Uchiha crest on the back was half-hidden by the waterfall of her silky brown hair. She was on her knees in the dirt, digging up daikon radishes.

Lost in the leaves of a nearby tree, Itachi watched her work, so mesmerized by her graceful movements that it took a few minutes for him to realize that it was highly unusual for daughters of a prominent clan members to work on anything but their ninja skills. Itachi's mother cooked for her family, but it was something she enjoyed, and his father had made it clear that whenever she wanted, a servant could take over the chore.

So, why was Emiko picking vegetables in her family's garden? Did she enjoy cooking, too? When he shifted his position on the wall, in order to get a better look at her face, the movement of his sandals against the stone made Emiko's head snap up.

She was on her feet in the blink of an eye, fists raised, radishes forgotten. Itachi admired her battle stance for a moment before he jumped down from the fence, landing on a grassy patch a few yards away from her.

Emiko's eyes, narrowed before, suddenly grew wider. "Itachi-sama?"

"I didn't mean to startle you," he said, unable to come up with anything else. She had a mesh shirt on underneath her yukata and he found himself focusing on the criss-cross pattern that was exposed both below and above where the robe was belted. Blinking, he looked up at her confused expression. "I was just passing by and heard someone humming."

"And...you were so offended by the sound that you decided to make it stop?" As soon as the question was out in the open, Emiko slapped her hand against her mouth. "I'm sorry, Itachi-sama." She shook her head. "I forgot myself for a moment. Please forgive me."

The corners of his lips turned up. "No." At her pained look, he added, "There's nothing to forgive. I'm the one who intruded on your privacy."

"Why did you..." She stopped short. "It doesn't matter."

"Emiko-san..."

Emiko scooped up her radishes and took a few steps back. "I have to go, Itachi-sama." Holding the basket with both hands clasped in front of her, she bowed. "Excuse me, please."

"Wait!" he called out when she turned to go. Itachi watched her visibly wince, but he couldn't tell if it was because of the order itself or the tone of his voice. She slowly, hesitantly turned around, like someone who was very used to doing what she was told, no matter what. "You have a question; you should ask it."

"I can't, Itachi-sama. I shouldn't have..." Again, Emiko silenced herself, but when she looked up at him, her eyes were liquid amber. "Please let me go inside."

He frowned. "Have I done something to upset you, Emiko-san?"

"No! I just...I'm not supposed to do this."

"This?" Itachi looked around. "Gardening?"

The barest hint of a smile lit up her beautiful face. "Not gardening." The smile died. "I'm not supposed to talk to you."

His frown turned darker. "Who told you that?"

"It doesn't look right," Emiko said, ignoring his question. Her words sounded memorized. "You are engaged to my sister. And I'm..."

"Engaged to someone else?"

Emiko's cheeks flushed pink. "No. I'm not engaged to anyone yet."

"I'm glad." Itachi wished he could take it back until he saw her cheeks turn even rosier. "I just meant...you should make the choice for yourself." He paused. "I didn't. Your sister didn't."

She looked down into her basket. "That's not entirely true, Itachi-sama."

He swallowed heavily. "What do you mean?"

Emiko moved her head from side to side. "This is why I was told not to talk to you." She backed up again. "Please...please forget I said anything."

"I don't think I can. I..."

"Emiko!" Her beautiful name, shouted with such loathing, cut him off. "Lazy girl," his ninja ears heard her mother grumble from the direction of the house. "Where are you hiding?!"

"Please," Emiko pleaded with him as quietly as possible. "If she finds you here..."

Itachi hesitated, but only for a second. He could sense Emiko's mother drawing closer. Before the woman could break through the garden's heavy foliage, Itachi bent his knees and leaped backwards, landing in his original spot on the wall.

Only seconds later, Emiko's mother, Isako, found her. Concealing himself in the leaves, Itachi watched her approach her daughter with her hands on her wide hips.

"Did you hear me call you or have you gone deaf?"

Emiko lowered her chin in a gesture of apology and respect. "The wind is loud tonight. I'm sorry, Okaa-san." Lifting her head, she turned her eyes up towards the garden wall.

Itachi wanted to smile at her, but Isako frowned and grabbed her daughter's chin; he immediately frowned instead. "Can't you even focus on what's right in front of you? It's no wonder you can't manage to access your Sharingan." She released Emiko with enough force to make the girl stumble back. "Are you done out here? Dinner needs to be ready when your sister and father return."

Emiko nodded. "I was just heading inside, Okaa-san." She waited until her mother turned around and started back into the house before Emiko looked back up at Itachi.

They locked stares for a long moment. A breeze swept over the garden, making the long locks of Emiko's hair dance around her slender shoulders. There were so many things he wanted to say to her, but with a small smile, Emiko followed her mother back into the house, leaving Itachi with even more questions than before.

* * *

That tiny smile, so freely given by a girl who seemed to have little in her life worth smiling about, haunted Itachi for the next few days. His concentration never slipped, but even while out on patrol he caught himself staring into space far more than usual.

It was particularly bad, he discovered, when he was alone. Sitting in the Archive Library, Itachi was supposed to be preparing for a mission to the Suna border, but his mind kept wandering back to that day in the garden.

What had Emiko been trying to tell him about his engagement? He'd assumed from the beginning that Akane had also been forced into the betrothal...but could he have been naive to assume she'd had no part in the arrangement? He wasn't given to vanity, yet he wasn't unaware that some women found him attractive. Had Akane chosen him?

For some reason, the idea that she had gotten to choose bothered Itachi. Why should she get to decide her future while he had his assigned to him like a life-long mission? His fist closed around his pencil, splitting the wood with a crack that echoed around the empty room.

"Is this a bad time?"

Startled by the sudden voice and the heavily injured man stepping out of the shadows to whom it belonged to, Itachi opened his hand, letting the mangled pencil fall into the spine of the open book in front of him. It wasn't just anyone who could sneak up on him, and his guard was instantly up.

"Uchiha Itachi." Half of the man's face and his entire forehead were covered with white bandages. His arm was also wrapped up and suspended in a sling. Although he smiled at Itachi, as if to reassure him, the expression was anything but warm. "I mean you no harm."

Standing up, Itachi reached into his back pocket for a kunai. "And I should take you at your word?"

"You'd be a fool if you did, and you are no fool." The man inclined his head, but even the humble gesture seemed fake. "My name is Shimura Danzo. It is a pleasure to meet the youngest captain in ANBU history."

"What do you want?"

"You are an Uchiha," Danzo noted. "Always seeking the worst intentions in a gesture of friendship."

"Friendship?" Itachi stared at the man's hooded eyes. "That's what you want?"

Danzo smiled again, still without any mirth. "I have a feeling, Itachi-san, that you and I could be great friends. Even allies. We have much in common."

At this, Itachi barely blinked. "How do you suppose that?" he asked dryly.

"I believe us both to be men who love this village and want to protect it." Danzo paused. "Whatever the cost."

"And I believe that to be true of every shinobi."

Danzo nodded rotely. "Perhaps. Perhaps not. There are always those who lay their loyalties with their kin first. Surely you know that."

Itachi's eyes narrowed, but he said nothing.

"I'll let you return to your work, Itachi-san." Danzo lifted his good hand in parting. "We should talk again soon."

He was gone as quickly and as quietly as he'd appeared. Itachi didn't even realize he'd been holding his breath until his lungs screamed for oxygen. But when he let it go, he didn't feel any less unsettled.

* * *

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Thank you so much to XxanimeaddictxX, Mathlover15, danieldeon, WashingAwaySins, ju-crom and sPaRkzZZ for their very kind reviews of the last chapter. They really fueled me to keep going.

As far as spoilers go, I have just reached the Five Kage Summit arc, so I'm rapidly catching up, but there are still things I may not know, so if I mess up, please bear with me. Again, thank you. Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

**Into the Dark**

**by Kristen Elizabeth**

* * *

_You and me have seen everything to see_

_From Bangkok to Calgary_

_And the soles of your shoes are all worn down..._

* * *

Clutching his upper arm, Itachi felt like the worst ninja in the entire Leaf Village. He was an ANBU captain, a genjutsu master...how had he managed to get hit by a shuriken during a routine training session?

"Where's your mind today, Uchiha-taichou?" one of his team members joked, earning himself a deadly glare. The man swallowed heavily. "Sorry, sir."

Itachi might have ignored the wound and kept going, but the ninja who had thrown it had made his attack from the stagnant waters of a nearby pond. There was no telling what sort of bacteria was trying to work its way through his bloodstream, and quite frankly he didn't trust anyone on his team with even the simplest of injuries. Plus, taking a break might clear his head.

"I'll be back," Itachi told his team. "Keep going. Kaioh-san, you're in charge."

It was a warm, breezy day, the sort of perfect combination for which his village was known, but Itachi hardly cared about the weather as he made his way to the hospital. He was too caught up in contemplating his own ineptitude. It was obvious that his encounters with Emiko and the shadowy Danzo had thrown off his legendary concentration; he had barely ever been wounded in battle, much less during training.

What drove him to distraction was the fact that there was nothing to be done about either of the people occupying his mind. His instincts told him that even discreet inquiries about Danzo would be inadvisable, and common sense dictated that carrying on any sort of relationship with the sister of the girl he was supposed to marry would be seriously frowned on should anyone find out.

It was ironic that at the one time he actually might have spilled his guts to Shisui, his best friend had decided to be as scarce as possible and jumpy whenever Itachi did see him.

Kohona's hospital was clean and neat, but positively reeked of ointments, medicines and antiseptics. Fortunately, it wasn't very busy; only a few civilians and a couple of genin were sitting in the lobby. After checking in with the medical ninja on duty, he was directed to a private room and instructed to wait. By that time, although blood soaked his entire sleeve, the wound was only oozing.

Itachi sat on the exam table, closed his eyes and waited. Only a short amount of time passed before the door slid open and he sensed a gentle chakra signature enter the room. When he heard someone clear their throat, he opened his eyes.

Emiko stood in front of him, her amber eyes narrow. She had a white lab coat on over her clothes, a short and tight black dress with slits up both sides. Her bare legs were wrapped in bandages up to her knees and she wore black sandals. She wore her hitai-ate like a kerchief holding her hair back from her face.

"Itachi-sama." She shook her head. "I thought you understood that I can't..."

He held out his bloody arm. "It's just a minor wound. I didn't want it to get infected."

Her forehead crinkled. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have assumed..." Emiko approached him. "May I see?" Itachi nodded and watched as she probed the cut in his sleeve and the wound beneath it. She cleared her throat a second later. "It's not bad. Would you like me to clean and bandage it, or use chakra to heal it?"

"Whatever you think is best."

As she spoke, Emiko neatly and carefully rolled up the sleeve of his shirt, exposing not only the wound, but the ANBU tattoo on his bicep. "The wound is superficial enough just to be bandaged, but if you don't mind, I could use the chakra practice."

"Is that why you're working here?" he asked.

"Two days a week, for three hours. All I really do is stock supplies and clean up, but more and more I'm getting to work with patients." Her eyes shone and her cheeks were pink, a far cry from the down-trodden expression he'd last seen on her in the garden. His own chest felt warm and his stomach itched. "All right." Emiko held her hand just over his wound. "Ready?"

Just as with Sasuke's scraped knees, a green glow formed around her small hand and he could feel cool chakra seeping into the wound. He lifted his head to see her face, unblinking and suddenly tense with concentration. She never turned her eyes away from her work, but he knew she knew that he was watching her.

When she lowered her hand, Itachi looked at his arm and found the wound had vanished without so much as a trace of a scar. It was like it had never happened.

"You're amazing," he said without thinking. Glancing back up, he saw her flush with pride before she turned away. Gathering his courage, he forged on, lest he loose his nerve and never have the chance again. "Emiko-san...I understand that you're not supposed to talk to me, but I need to talk to you...and this may be the safest place."

Her reply was quiet and devoid of any emotion save for a touch of regret. "What could someone like you possibly have to say to someone like me?"

Itachi frowned. "Is that your mother speaking or does that come from you?"

Emiko bowed her head for a long moment. He could see her fist balling up tightly. "You don't even know..." Flexing her hand, she looked back at him with wet eyes. "Your arm is fine now, Itachi-sama." Turning around completely, she bent at the waist in a deep bow. "Thank you for allowing me to help you today."

But he refused to leave. "I've offended you. I'm sorry."

She blinked several times, but rather than clearing away the tears that had gathered along her lashes, they spilled over onto her porcelain cheeks. "You haven't. I apologize for making you think that."

"I really don't want you to apologize to me again, especially not for speaking your mind," Itachi said. "Despite what my father might think, my branch of the family is not above yours. You don't owe me any respect or devotion." He lifted his shoulders. "We're both just ninja who serve our village."

Emiko's eyes roamed his face, finally settling on his eyes. He stared right back into the amber depths of her gaze. "You're not at all what I expected," she murmured.

"What were you expecting?"

"A spoiled, snobby, selfish, arrogant..."

Itachi's smile was rueful. "I think I understand."

"But you're not," Emiko rushed on, like she was afraid she might stop herself again. "You're not," she repeated softly. "And I almost wish you were, because then I wouldn't..." Rather than continue, she sighed.

"Please." He stood up from the exam table and took a step towards her. "Finish that thought."

Emiko shook her head and he could smell the scent of flowers from her hair. "Even if I could, it wouldn't matter."

"Because of the engagement."

Her chin quivered ever so slightly, just enough to convince him that when she nodded, she wasn't telling the entire truth.

"Did you sister choose me?" Itachi asked a few seconds later. "At least tell me that much."

It took another couple of seconds, but Emiko finally looked back up at him. "There isn't a girl in Konoha who wouldn't choose you, Itachi-sama."

He had never wanted to kiss anyone before that moment, yet leaning in and doing what he suddenly wanted to do seemed more than a little wrong. Emiko didn't deserve to be kissed by someone who was going to marry her sister. She deserved to be kissed by someone who was free. Someone who could belong to only her.

So, maybe he was as selfish as Emiko had feared he might be, because Itachi couldn't stop himself from asking, "When can we talk again?" He held up his hand before she could protest. "My life is...complicated. I don't know how, but you make it less so. Can you understand that?"

"Yes," she whispered.

"Then...meet me tonight." Itachi searched his mind for an isolated spot in the village. "At the Muromachi Shrine."

Emiko reached up to fiddle with her necklace. "I'll try." She dropped the silver, ring-studded chain. "You should go before someone comes in to check on me."

Itachi walked to the door, but before he slid it open, he looked back at her. "You'll be there?"

The corners of her lips turned up. "I said I would try." Her smile faded. "That's all I can do, Itachi-sama."

With a nod, Itachi left, but no sooner had he stepped out of the hospital and into the warm sunshine than he was approached by a masked ANBU guard.

"The Hokage wishes to see you," the faceless man said, his voice muffled. His message delivered, he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Itachi glanced up at Hokage Tower. There was little point in trying to guess what the Sandaime wanted, and he would know soon enough, but it was likely only about one thing.

* * *

The sun had already started to set by the time Itachi arrived home. As soon as he entered the house, he knew that dinner hadn't been held for him. The delicious scent of grilled fish made his stomach growl. No sooner had he stepped out of his sandals than a small, wiry body shot out into the hallway.

"Nii-san's home!" Sasuke announced. To Itachi, he added, "Okaa-san made onigiri, but with seaweed, not okaka."

Although the meal had clearly been designed for him, Itachi shook his head. "I'm not hungry."

"Itachi." Their father appeared in the doorway that led into the kitchen. "Come eat with us."

It was an order, not a request. With a silent sigh, Itachi followed his father and brother to the table. When he was seated on the floor, his mother served him with a worried smile.

"Itadakimasu," he murmured and although he had no appetite, he took a bite of his salted ayu and then one of his onigiri.

"You missed the clan meeting this afternoon," Fugaku said into his tea. Lowering the cup, he glared at his eldest son. "Where were you?"

"I was on duty," Itachi replied.

"On duty?" Fugaku slammed his cup down with enough force to make Mikoto tremble and Sasuke wince. "What about your duty to us?"

Itachi looked up from his rice and fish. "Am I not fulfilling it, Otou-san?"

"You know damn well that you..."

Mikoto lept to her feet. "Please, let's not fight! Not in front of Sasuke."

Fugaku's expression relaxed just a bit when glanced at his younger son. "Sasuke, do you understand why I'm angry with your brother?" The boy's dark eyes were wide, and he was clearly torn between his duel loyalties, but he eventually nodded ever so slightly. "There is nothing more important than one's duty to their family and their clan."

"What about duty to the village?" Sasuke asked.

Curbing the impulse to embrace his little brother, Itachi kept his eyes on his meal, but listened carefully for any nuance in his father's answer.

"Villages rise and fall," Fugaku told his son. "Clans carry on."

Suddenly nauseated, Itachi set down his chopsticks and stood up. "The meal was delicious," he told his mother, "but I have a lot of work to do."

"Itachi," Fugaku called out to him. "You will attend the next meeting or there will be consequences."

Ignoring the threat, Itachi walked back into the hallway, stepped into his sandals and left the house, heading for the far edge of the village.

* * *

As evening turned into night, Itachi waited on the tree-lined sando of the Muromachi Shrine. The shrine itself had been abandoned for years, the buildings nearly swallowed up by the forest, but the red torii still stood, marking the entrance to what was now a clandestine meeting place for anyone who wanted or needed anonymity.

A sudden wind blew through the trees, upsetting a flock of crows. Itachi looked up just in time to see them fly across the moon, but upon feeling a sudden chakra presence before him, he dropped his chin back down.

It was far too strong to be Emiko.

At the end of the sando, just in front of the ruins of the haidan, there was a man standing with his back to Itachi. He wore a long black cloak decorated with large red flowers edged in white.

"Who are you?" he called out to the stranger. When he was ignored, Itachi reached behind his back, grasping the handle of his sword. "I won't ask again."

Rather than answer, the man disappeared, only to reappear a moment later, perched on the apex of the haidan's crumbling tile roof. Turned away from the light of the moon, his face was concealed by distance and darkness.

Drawing out his sword, Itachi's eyes turned red. His Sharingan told him what his instincts already knew: the man's chakra was powerful. Deadly. A second later, the man disappeared again, but even Itachi's eyes couldn't track his movements.

So, when he felt a hand on his shoulder, Itachi's years of training kicked in without hesitation. Vanishing for a moment, he manipulated himself behind his adversary, drawing his sword against his opponent's throat.

It was only when he heard a feminine gasp that he realized the body in front of him was too slender and short to be the man in the flowered cloak. Dropping his sword, Itachi forcibly turned the new arrival around and found himself face to face with a very pale Emiko.

Itachi's arms fell to his sides, but it was a second too late. She'd already seen his blood-colored eyes and he knew from experience that it was all she would ever see from then on when they met.

"You came," he blurted out. Emiko nodded tightly. "Did you see the man in the cloak?" he immediately demanded.

She shook her head. "I didn't see anyone but you."

Itachi looked all around, but the man's chakra signature was gone. "He was here. I swear it."

"I believe you." His gaze landed on Emiko again. "Who was he?"

"I don't know." After another, fruitless minute of searching, Itachi bent down and picked up his sword. "I'm just glad he's gone." After sheathing his sword, Itachi lowered his chin in apology. "Forgive me. I nearly hurt you."

Emiko smiled softly. "No, you didn't. It takes a lot more than that to..." She delicately cleared her throat. "Do you want to go track him down?"

"I don't think I could," Itachi admitted. "I imagine he'll find me again, anyway."

"Then I should go."

Without thinking, Itachi reached out and grabbed her forearm to keep her from walking away. Her skin was soft against his hand and a bolt of what felt like gentle electricity ran all the way up his own arm, all the way to the center of his chest.

Emiko looked down at his hand, then back up at his eyes, only to find they'd returned to their usual dark color. "You said you wanted to talk to me." Gently, she eased herself out of his grip. "I only came to ask you one question." She paused. "Why?"

"Because..." The wind whipped past them. "You have been in my thoughts since the moment I saw you at the yuinou."

She blinked, her dark lashes resting her cheeks for a second too long. "Akane didn't want me there. Maybe she was right. I should have stayed home."

"You had every right to be there," Itachi said. "And I'm glad you were."

But Emiko just shook her head again. "You don't understand."

"No, I don't, but only because you won't help me to."

Emiko rubbed her arm where his hand had made a faint impression. "It doesn't matter," she decided. "You're engaged to Akane and Akane loves you."

"Then..." Itachi lifted his shoulders. "I'm sorry for her."

"You would be the first," Emiko said with a slight smirk.

A moment passed. "I don't have an older sibling myself, but from watching my brother and you, I can guess it's hard to..."

"Akane isn't older than I am."

"I'm sorry," he apologized. "It didn't seem as if you were younger than her."

"I'm not." Emiko crossed her arms tightly. "We're the same age."

He frowned. "You're twins? The kind who don't look alike?"

Emiko's eyes locked onto his. "That's what Otou-san would like everyone to believe."

Even a genius needed more than just a few pieces to put together a puzzle. Still staring at her, Itachi asked, "But what is the truth?"

Her chest rose and fell rapidly and once again she started fiddling with her silver necklace. "I can't," she whispered. "I'm not supposed to know myself."

"Emiko-san, are you adopted?"

She dragged her lower lip through her teeth. "Why do you care so much about me? You're the only Uchiha that does."

"More and more I find myself concerned about what does or doesn't concern our clan." Itachi touched the up-swing of a curl that rested just above the swell of her chest. "Two sisters of the same, marriageable age. Why wasn't I given a choice?"

Her amber eyes turned dark. "Is that was this is about? You just want to know why you didn't get to decide between us?"

"I want to know why one daughter is revered and the other picks vegetables in the garden."

"Maybe I like vegetables," Emiko shot back. "You don't know."

"I don't," he agreed again. "I didn't even know you existed until it was too late. Why is that?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Why did you miss a clan meeting today?" When he blinked, she went on, "You're not the only one who can ask uncomfortable questions, Itachi." Seconds slipped by before he suddenly smiled. "What?"

"That was the first time you didn't say 'sama.'"

An immeasurable amount of time passed as they stared at each other. Finally, he moved forward and put his hands on her shoulders. Leaning down, he softly pressed his mouth against hers. She didn't try to stop him, and when he drew back, he was pleased to see her eyes closed in unmistakable pleasure.

"This is wrong," she whispered just before he kissed her again. "Itachi..." Emiko turned her head away, breaking the kiss. "We can't do this."

With his nose now buried in the fragrant locks of her hair, Itachi drew in a ragged breath. The warmth of her lips had stirred up feelings he didn't recognize. All he knew in that moment was that he wanted more.

"I would have chosen you." He took reluctant step back. "You need to know that. You would have been my choice."

For some reason, this made her sad; tears collected in her eyes. "They wouldn't have allowed it." Her voice wavered. "I shouldn't have come here. I just..."

"Finish the thought," Itachi said quietly.

"I wanted to prove this wasn't just a dream." The twin tracks of her tears caught the light of the moon and glistened on her cheeks. "But it was...because only in a dream does the pride of the clan prefer me over Akane."

Itachi tried to reach out again, to wipe away the tears, but she jerked her head to the side and out of range. "What have they done to you?"

"I have to go." Emiko hesitated, taking one last look at him, before she turned and ran, her sandals slapping against the stone sando. He could hear her footsteps almost all the way down the steep stairs that led up to the shrine.

Itachi touched his mouth. His lips didn't feel any different, yet they would never be the same again.

When enough time had passed, Itachi started down the stairs himself. When he reached the bottom, he thought he heard the faintest sound of laughter, but there was nothing in the darkness.

At least, nothing he could see.

* * *

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Thanks so much, Aista, Mathlover15, XxanimeaddictxX and itachifan01 for reviewing the last chapter. I have to say, writing this chapter was intense, and not unlike pulling teeth in some parts. Even though I'm determined to see it through, reading that people are enjoying it makes the work so much easier. I really would love to hear your thoughts, and I hope you enjoy this chapter.

By the way, I'm up to the episode where Madara implants Itachi's eyes into Sasuke. Catching up quickly...still so much to go!

* * *

**Into the Dark**

**by Kristen Elizabeth**

* * *

_If Heaven and Hell decide_

_That they both are satisfied_

_Illuminate the NOs on their vacancy signs_

* * *

It was rare that Itachi ever had a free day from his duties, either official or unofficial, so when a day off did roll around, he almost didn't know what to do with himself. Out of habit, he woke before the sun rose, but since there was no training session or mission that required his attention, he lay on his futon and watched the room fill with light. It was only when a particularly cheerful sunbeam crept across his eyes that he finally sat up.

After folding and storing his futon, he washed his face and hands and dressed in his usual pants and high-collared shirt. The scent of breakfast drew him to the other side of the house, where his mother was serving Sasuke a rolled omelet over his rice. His father was nowhere to be seen.

"Good morning," he greeted them.

Mikoto looked him up and down with a warm, motherly eye. "Itachi...good morning."

"Nii-san!" Sasuke beamed around a mouthful of rice. "Guess what?"

Taking a seat the low table, Itachi smiled as his mother handed him a steaming cup of tea. "Did you lose another tooth?"

His little brother frowned. "I stopped losing teeth ages ago, Nii-san. I'm not a baby!"

He nodded in apology. "Of course not." Mikoto set a bowl of eggs and rice in front of him. "Thank you, Okaa-san."

The formality made her smooth brow crease, but the shadow disappeared almost as soon as it crossed her face. She returned to the stove to make up her own breakfast, now that her boys were fed.

"I made a Fireball yesterday!" Sasuke announced, unable to keep such news to himself for any longer. "And father said it means I can start wearing the fan!"

Itachi swallowed a bite of his omelet like it was a lump of clay. "I'm glad, Sasuke." He tried to smile. "I'm sure Otou-san was proud of you."

Sasuke looked down at his breakfast, his tone heavy with guilt. "He said...it meant I didn't have to follow in your footsteps anymore."

For a moment, Itachi allowed himself to indulge in a long-standing, deeply buried fantasy: that he and his brother had been born into another family, a nameless clan where they could have been friends instead of eternal rivals.

He felt Sasuke trying to look at him without being noticed, so for the boy's sake, Itachi nodded. "He's right. My footsteps aren't worth the walk, Sasuke." He hesitated. "You'll find a better path."

Behind them, Mikoto cleared her throat. "Sasuke, it's almost time for school. Are you ready?"

Suddenly a whirl of renewed energy, Sasuke downed a few rapid bites of his breakfast before scrambling off to collect his books and ninja tools. When Itachi tried to get up as well, his mother stopped him with a gentle hand.

"Itachi, I know you have the day off," Mikoto began, "so there's no reason not to finish your tea."

Lowering himself back down to the floor, Itachi picked up his cup. Several moments ticked by in silence. Finally, he cleared his throat and set his cup back down. "Kaa-san?" His mother's lovely face lit up at the relative informality, and Itachi immediately felt guilty for addressing her as such, knowing that it would suit his purposes to do so. "May I ask you about my engagement?"

She blinked. "Yes. Of course. But...you know I wasn't involved in the negotiations. I only approved your father's choice."

"That's just it." Itachi paused. "I want to understand why Otou-san made that particular choice...and not another."

Just then, Sasuke skidded back into the kitchen with his school supplies. "Nii-san, I'm going to practice my Fire Release after school. Will you watch me?"

He very nearly agreed, seemingly able to give his brother some much-needed attention, but then Itachi remembered that his day wasn't as free as he'd thought: there was a clan meeting in the afternoon, and it had been made quite clear to him that he could not miss it for anything.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke." He gestured to his brother, and when Sasuke was close enough, Itachi poked his forehead with one finger. "Another time."

With a slight slump in his small shoulders, his little brother left the room. A moment later Itachi heard the front door slide open, only to be slammed shut with more force than necessary. He released a pent-up breath.

While he talked with Sasuke, his mother had been brooding over her tea. Now that they were alone again, Mikoto lifted her head and looked her eldest son straight in the eye.

"Another choice?" She smiled softly. "Do you have someone else in mind, Itachi?" He glanced down. "I see." His mother's gaze never wavered. "Do I know her? Is she one of us?"

He shook his head. "I'm not sure."

Mikoto's eyebrow lifted. "How can you not be sure about that?"

Itachi hesitated. "Kaa-san, I realize I've already asked you this once before, but please tell me everything you can about Akane's family. If I'm to be her husband, I want to know everything about her and her parents...her siblings...everything."

His mother might have settled down to run her husband's household, but she was still a jonin-level kunoichi, fully capable of drawing correct conclusions with limited information, especially when it came to her own children. She only watched Itachi for another moment before he could see realization suddenly dawn on her.

"Oh, Itachi," she murmured. "Of all the girls in the village...why her?" He took a sip of his cold tea, but said nothing, not even when his mother sighed. "All right," she eventually agreed, surprising him. "I don't know much. Isako-san...Akane's mother...she's not a very warm woman. Plus, she's much older than I am, so we're hardly friends. What I do know is mostly just rumors that might not even be true."

"Anything, Kaa-san. Thank you."

Mikoto sipped her own tea before continuing. "I remember when Isako-san was pregnant because I was carrying you at the time. Even though she was so much older than me, it was her first pregnancy, too. Had she been nicer, I might have tried to be more friendly...but then you arrived early and I was so caught up in being a new mother that I didn't have time to think about anyone else."

Itachi watched her carefully as she went on, "I heard that she'd given birth, but I didn't hear anything else, certainly nothing about her having twins, which is something that would have gotten around. Twins are rare...almost unheard of in our clan. But it must have happened, because the next time I remember seeing Isako-san was three years later. You and I were taking a walk around the compound, and she was out with her daughters."

Hearing that he'd seen Emiko years before he could even remember intrigued Itachi and he leaned forward slightly. "What do you remember about them?"

"Beautiful little girls," Mikoto mused. "I remember hoping that I would have one, too." She flushed pink, as if ashamed for the thought. "But I was already carrying your brother; I just didn't know it yet." His mother frowned, as if a thought had just struck her. "I do remember how much Akane looked like her mother...but the other little girl..."

"Emiko," he supplied.

She nodded slowly. "She was different. When we stopped to say hello, Akane came right up to you, but Emiko...she hung back. I remember telling you to greet her, too, but Isako-san..." Mikoto stopped.

"Kaa-san?"

His mother's frown grew deeper. "What sort of a parent says something like in front of a child?" she scowled, lost in the memory. "Telling me she didn't matter...of course the poor thing heard her. She was on the verge of tears!"

Itachi's hands gripped his tea cup tighter. "Why did she say it?" Mikoto shook her head. "You must have some idea, Kaa-san. Even if it's just a rumor."

His mother set her cup down. "Itachi, let me explain something to you that you will never understand until the day you are a parent yourself. There is nothing more important to me than my children's happiness. You and Sasuke...there is nothing you could do that would make me stop loving you. Nothing. A parent's love is unconditional, and even if there are two children, it only multiplies. It never divides."

He swallowed a lump in his throat. "What are you saying?" Looking back and forth between her onyx eyes that so closely matched his brother's and his own, Itachi dared to ask, "Are you saying...Isako didn't treat Emiko like a real parent would?"

"More like a caretaker," his mother said. "A reluctant, resentful caretaker." Reaching across the table, she put her soft hand over Itachi's. "I didn't tell you this to encourage you to forsake Akane. She's an excellent kunoichi and I believe you'll be happy with her, no matter what her family life is like."

Itachi shook his head. "I'm sorry. I think you're wrong." He eased his hand out from under hers. "One more question. Why didn't you say something back then?" When Mikoto frowned, he added, "Your husband is the leader of the main branch of the Uchiha clan. If you didn't like the way Hideo's wife treated her daughter, why didn't you do anything about it? Why did you let that little girl be raised in the shadows, believing she wasn't worthy of anything better than second best?"

"Itachi, I..."

He stood up. "Never mind, Okaa-san. I'm starting to understand." Itachi paused. "That's just the Uchiha way, isn't it?"

With that, he left the kitchen, heading for the sunshine and solitude of the courtyard where he could meditate in peace before being summoned for the meeting he was already dreading in his heart.

* * *

"They keep us isolated from the rest of the village like pariahs."

"We shouldn't have to stand for this! We're the strongest clan in Konoha."

"We're the strongest clan in the entire Land of Fire!"

"They're scared of us. That's all it is. They know what we could do to them."

With his head lowered, Itachi listened to the angry voices all around him. The hidden meeting space beneath the Naka Shrine was packed full of his clan members, and every Uchiha in the room, save for him, was on his feet, shouting the same things over and over again as if volume was tantamount to action.

Itachi's head pounded hard enough to make him wince with each heavy throb. How much longer would this go on? These men who claimed to be better than everyone else...they never actually did anything. They were like barking dogs chained to trees.

"You're right, Tekka." Upon hearing his father's voice, Itachi lifted his aching head. Fugaku's muscled arms were folded over his chest as he waited for the roar to die down before he continued. "We are the military might of this village. We possess a power for which they have no counter-attack. The Sharingan makes us invincible...and Sarutobi knows that."

Itachi frowned. He knew all too well that his father had little to no respect for the Hokage, but to refer to him like that announced that he no longer cared to even fake his allegiance to the Hidden Leaf or its leader.

It was a declaration of war.

Uchiha Hideo, Emiko and Akane's father, stepped forward. "What do you suggest we do, Fugaku-sama?"

"As long as Sarutobi has the Nine Tails, anything we do would be fruitless," Fugaku reminded them. "He keeps that demon child under close watch, but the boy is weak. My younger son tells me he's dead last in his classes and may never graduate."

Itachi lowered his eyes again. Whether Sasuke had volunteered this information or given it freely in a desperate bid for their father's attention, too much of their clan's arrogance and ambition had rubbed off on his little brother already...and it was beginning to show.

"Eliminating the brat could set the beast within him free. We'll need to be careful about this and consider every possible scenario. I suggest we take our time."

At this, the room erupted again as the bloody-thirsty, impatient men of his clan protested any further delay. Fugaku held up his hand until it was silent.

"Some of you in this room are too young to remember what happened six years ago, but most of you should know exactly what we would face should anything go wrong. Rushing ahead blindly in this regard isn't just foolish, it would be suicide." He looked around, daring anyone to disagree with him. When Itachi felt the heat of his father's stare land directly on him, he looked up, straight into his father's eyes. "Do you agree, Itachi?"

Without blinking, he replied, "It's never unwise to fully consider one's actions...Otou-san."

After a painfully long moment, his father broke their stare. "Are we united in this?" he asked the room. A chorus of agreement followed and when it died down, Fugaku nodded. "Then we meet again next week with ideas on how to proceed. Dismissed."

Itachi slowly stood up, as not to draw any attention to himself. Although his mind was racing, he made no sudden movements; he just went along with the shuffling crowd as they came up from the depths of the shrine.

As it wouldn't be prudent for a large group of Uchihas to be seen leaving one place at one time, each clan member departed separately and silently, some even transforming in order to slip out of the shrine unnoticed.

For Itachi, leaving the meeting was always an exercise in double subterfuge. Not only did he need to avoid being seen by any random villager or fellow shinobi, but he had to shake off whatever Uchiha was assigned to follow him that day.

With movements too fast to be tracked, his hands formed the familiar signs as he murmured, "Kage bunshin no jutsu."

At the exact second his clone appeared, Itachi vanished, reappearing high above the shrine in the depths of an obliging tree. His clone continued on as if nothing had happened, heading for the Uchiha compound. One of his clansman followed, rather obviously, Itachi noted. No wonder the man had never made ANBU.

Motionless, with the chakra in his own body dimmed and the chakra in his clone at a normal level, Itachi waited until he could sense no one else in the area before he leaped to an adjoining tree. While his clone was tailed all the way to his house, Itachi made his way to Hokage Tower.

* * *

Smoked curled up from the end of the Third Hokage's pipe. His eyes were mostly closed, but Itachi had no doubt that the older man had heard every single word of his report. Although he hadn't shown any emotion over the plans to overthrow him, there had been a flicker in his ancient eyes when Uzumaki Naruto's name had come up.

"Do you know when this is happening?" the Hokage asked, his tone solemn.

Itachi shook his head. "They haven't decided yet, but I would imagine it won't be long now." He paused. "They're growing impatient."

Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded as if he'd been expecting this all along. "But there's still time."

"Time, Hokage-sama?" Itachi frowned. "Time for what?"

"For negotiations." The man who had introduced himself as Danzo stepped out of the shadows, and Itachi's eyes narrowed. Had he really been there all along, totally unnoticed? What sort of man was able to do that? "Hiruzen believes it's still possible to talk his way into peace with your clan," Danzo told him.

The Hokage closed his heavy eyes. "You've made your feelings on this subject very clear, Danzo."

"At what point will you start listening to me?" Danzo's eyes were mostly closed, but his scarred jaw was taut with determination. "When they use the Fourth's child to attack the village? When they come for you with a hundred Sharingan?" He leaned on his cane. "The time for negotiating has passed, whether you want to admit it or not."

Itachi said nothing, but he looked back and forth between the two men as they stared at each other, locked in some silent communication that came from a long history of friendship and rivalry.

"Itachi?" the Third finally said.

"Yes, Hokage-sama?"

"I realize leading this double life must take a toll, but if you could keep reporting what you learn...you could save this village from collapsing in on itself."

Itachi nodded. "I understand. I'll do my best."

"But how far would you go, Itachi?" Danzo stepped towards him. "For the village...what would you do in order to save it?"

"Danzo!" The Third stood up abruptly. "There's no need for that."

"Maybe not yet," Danzo conceded, "but the time could come, Hiruzen. If it does...Itachi..." He paused. "You're the only one who could stop your clan. So, I'll ask you again. To save Konoha, would you be prepared to..."

"Enough!" Itachi blinked at the thunder in the Hokage's tone, but Danzo had no reaction. "This discussion is over. Itachi, you may go. And...thank you."

Swallowing back a lump in his throat, Itachi bowed his head before vanishing from the room. He reappeared on a hill that sat lower than the Tower, but still stood tall enough to look over his home. His village.

He couldn't go straight to the Uchiha compound as his house was still being watched by the clan member who thought Itachi was already inside, so Itachi set out for the last place he'd felt truly at peace.

* * *

It was foolish, but on his way up the steep stone steps, Itachi had almost convinced himself that there was a chance Emiko might be waiting for him at the Muromachi Shrine. He hadn't seen her since the night they'd kissed under the moon, but he was constantly looking for her, hoping to see her amber eyes in the endless faces on the street, and those stolen moments had become the light in his increasingly dark life.

Yet, for all the ways she made his world a little brighter, Emiko was still such a mystery, one that he couldn't seem to solve. Was it possible to fall in love with an enigma? Was it even possible for him to fall in love at all? He had certainly never planned on it. Love limited a shinobi; it created priorities that were in direct conflict with one's duties to the greater good.

Wasn't love the very reason why he had betrayed his clan in order to work with the Hokage? It wasn't just his love for the village; his love for his family wouldn't allow him to sit back and watch them destroy themselves. He was absolutely certain he was doing the right thing in that regard.

But what did Danzo want him to do? And why was he the only one who could do it?

As Itachi walked the crumbled length of the pathway that led to the abandoned houses of worship, a flash of red and black caught his eye. He didn't need to see the new arrival to recognize the chakra signature. It was the man who had taunted him with silence only days earlier; just as Itachi had suspected, the cloaked figure had found him again.

Standing very still, Itachi waited for the man to materialize in front of him. Up close, he looked to be thin and frail underneath his patterned cloak, but Itachi knew better than to underestimate him. The orange mask that covered all but one of his eyes practically announced to the world that nothing about this man was what it seemed to be.

"Uchiha Itachi."

It disturbed him that the stranger knew his name, but Itachi kept his expression neutral. "Who are you?"

"I suppose you could say...I am you," the man replied, turning his head just a bit. At the new angle, Itachi could see that the one eye revealed through his mask was red with back markings. "We're the same blood."

Itachi lifted his chin. "You're an Uchiha? What's your name?"

"Is that important? You must know by now that even if we fought, you couldn't defeat me, so why not just listen to what I have to say, and spare yourself unnecessary pain?'

It made him sick to his stomach to realize that the man was right. His chakra was even more powerful than Itachi remembered, and given that he had the Sharingan, too, Itachi could see no scenario in which he would win in a fight between them.

The masked man took Itachi's silence as a cue to continue. "There's a war coming," he began. "A war that will destroy this village."

"How do you know this?" Itachi asked.

"Because..." His eye narrowed behind his mask. "I'm going to start it."

Despite knowing he was literally fighting a losing battle, Itachi flew at the man, his Sharingan burning. Taijutsu came as naturally to him as anything else, but the nameless Uchiha countered and ducked every blow with agility and ease.

"You're good," the man complemented him. "But not good enough."

It happened before Itachi could see it coming, let alone stop it. Drawing back his arm for another attempted blow, Itachi's body suddenly stopped, paralyzed by an unseen force. He could only look around in horror as the shrine, the trees, the sun...everything around him melted away, leaving him suspended in the middle of a dark red void.

He knew his way out of a genjutsu, but for some reason all of the methods that always been second nature weren't working. In fact, the more he struggled to release himself, the more it felt like he never would.

"What do you want?" he asked his faceless opponent, his voice echoing. "Why are you doing this?"

"I've already told you what I want." The masked man materialized a moment after he replied, hovering just beyond Itachi's reach. "Do you want to see it for yourself?"

Without waiting for an answer, the man disappeared. As soon as he did, the world around Itachi melted again, but this time it morphed into his worst nightmare. Suddenly, he found himself standing in the middle of a devastated village.

His village.

There were bodies everywhere. Looking around in horror, Itachi recognized few faces; most of the villagers had been ripped apart. The streets were soaked with blood and gore. Taking a step back, Itachi stumbled over something soft, but solid. Unable to catch his balance, he fell to the ground, and it was only then that he saw what had tripped him.

Emiko lay on her stomach in a pool of blood, her head unnaturally twisted towards him. Her back was a mess of burned fabric and scorched flesh, as if she'd been run straight through with a bolt of fire. But it was her eyes that made Itachi struggle to keep from crying out. They were half-open, almost looking straight at him, but the rich amber color was clouded over in death. Lifeless.

Scrambling to his feet, Itachi tried to run away, but something out of place in all the carnage caught his attention. Pink. He knew that particular shade and who it belonged to. His legs felt as if they were made of lead, but Itachi moved towards the bit of vibrant color, not wanting to see, but needing to know.

The little girl named Sakura was lying on her side, her remarkable hair nearly covering her face, her tiny arms holding her bloody stomach as if to literally keep herself together, but it was what lay behind her that made Itachi drop to his knees.

Sasuke's small body had curled around Sakura's even smaller frame like a protective shell, but the boy's efforts had been in vain. A blade had sliced across his little brother's back, straight through the Uchiha fan on his shirt, exposing flesh and muscle and bone. Both children were motionless in death.

Pain like he had never known crushed Itachi's heart and it took a second before he realized that the strangled screams shattering the silence were coming from him. Even the knowledge that the scene wasn't real couldn't stop his visceral reaction. This was everything he had ever feared, everything he was trying to prevent, and it was laid out in front of him with such intense detail that it wasn't possible to brush it off as a product of the genjutsu.

Not when he knew that the man who had created it in his mind was fully capable of making it a reality.

"Would you like to see more?" his tormentor asked. "Your parents, your best friend, your cherished Hokage?"

On his knees next to his brother's body, Itachi fought for every breath. Unshed tears flew from his eyes as he shook his head back and forth.

"You're going to do this to us?" he managed to ask, nearly choking on the words.

"No." Itachi lifted his head to find the masked man standing over him. "You're going to do it to yourselves."

This time, Itachi shook his head out of certainty, not despair.

The man's laugh was cold and cruel. "If you think your Hokage can prevent this, you're wrong. If you think he will prevent it, you're just naive." He crouched down to Itachi's level. "Whether it's by my hand or by the hands of a hundred Uchiha...this village will be destroyed. There's nothing you can do to stop it."

When the man stood up, Itachi picked himself up off the ground on shaky legs. "Then...why show me this at all? If I can't prevent it, why did you come to me?"

The man said nothing. He just stood his ground, his body as devid of expression as the mask that covered his face. In that moment...Itachi knew. He had no idea how he knew...whether it was true that when two skilled shinobi fought, they could read each others minds, or if it was just some undefinable instinct he possessed...but he had no doubt now who was standing in front of him.

"I know who you are."

The nightmare around him faded as the genjutsu slipped away. Twilight had descended onto Konoha while he'd been trapped, but Itachi could see his opponent clearly, despite the darkness.

"Do you?" the man asked. Itachi inclined his chin. "Even if you did...which I doubt you do...no one would believe you. Until it was too late."

"Spare the village," Itachi said.

The masked man laughed. "Are you giving orders now? How like an Uchiha you are." His laughter faded away. "Let's say that I did. What would you give me in return?"

"Something you want even more than the destruction of the Hidden Leaf." Itachi's mouth was dry and his stomach churned at having to say the words, but he pressed on. "The end of the Uchihas." The air suddenly felt colder, like all of the warmth had left Itachi's body. "I told you," he said quietly. "I know who you are."

"You wouldn't," the man snorted. "They're your blood."

"They're yours, too," Itachi reminded him.

"You're even more interesting than I thought." There was a long pause. "I know my reasons. Uchiha Itachi...what are yours?"

The image of Sasuke and Emiko's broken, bloody bodies was still with him; every time he blinked, he could see them again. This was the only way, he told himself. The only way he could change that future...was to take charge of it.

"Am I free to go?" he asked the masked man, his voice dull. "I assume you'll be watching me?"

"I wouldn't encourage you to cross me. I have no tolerance for betrayal."

Itachi smiled but there was no light in his eyes. "No. Of course not."

But when had Itachi become so used to it?

* * *

It was a warm night and the citizens of Konoha, ninja and civilian alike, filled the brightly-lit streets. As Itachi aimlessly walked, he paid close attention to the sounds, sights, and smells. An old woman selling homemade sour candies, a father and mother holding their child's hands, two shinobi in flak vests laughing over a bottle of sake.

This was his home. He couldn't explain it, this deep-seeded attachment to the Hidden Leaf. Perhaps it was seeing the village nearly destroyed by war that had given him such an intense loyalty. It didn't matter that, to Konoha, he was just another Uchiha, a necessary thorn in an otherwise peaceful community. He knew what his purpose in life was...why he had been born with the skills he possessed. And it wasn't for the Uchihas.

It was for them. The old woman, the small family, the shinobi. All of them. To protect them. From anything.

Even from his family.

A flash of yellow darted in front of him. Itachi blinked and focused on the young boy weaving in and out of the crowd. His hair was unmistakable. Itachi could clearly recall the man who had passed it on to Uzumaki Naruto.

Inevitably, the Fourth's son slammed into someone and fell back into the street. The man the child had run into turned around, and Itachi could see the fan pattern on the sleeve of his shirt. An Uchiha. Itachi didn't even know his name; he wasn't even high enough to warrant an invitation to the clan meetings, but he was still an Uchiha.

Upon seeing Naruto, the man growled and raised a meaty fist, preparing to strike the child. Itachi was about to intervene when he saw another flash, this time of silver. Perhaps no one else saw it with their ordinary eyes, but Itachi watched as Hatake Kakashi darted forward, grabbed the attacker's arm and twisted it with a sickening snap. He was gone before the man could even howl in pain.

Unaware of how he'd been saved, Naruto jumped to his feet and took off running. Itachi stood in the street long after the would-be assailant was carted off to the hospital, his mind in turmoil.

Hate. Was it all his clan was good for? Would it corrupt Sasuke someday? Was it already too late for his little brother?

_How far would you go, Itachi?_ Danzo's question haunted him. _For the village...what would you do in order to save it?_

His feet started moving before he even told himself to walk. He let instinct lead him, not knowing any other way, until he found himself a remote part of the village that invited no one to visit, much less think about staying.

Two masked ANBU guards tried to stop him. Itachi only said, "I need to speak with Danzo."

* * *

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Apologies for the long delay, anyone who is reading this faithfully. I took a vacation during which...drumroll...I got engaged! So, early wedding plans gave me a bit of writer's block, but now that I'm all caught up with the anime (finally...although I'm not caught up with the manga), I am determined to finish this story. Thank you so much for reading it.

* * *

**Into the Dark**

**by Kristen Elizabeth**

* * *

_No blinding light or tunnels to gates of white_

_Just our hands clasped so tight_

_Waiting for the hint of a spark_

* * *

In the days that followed, Itachi all but lost his appetite for anything except training. He spent hours in the endless forests that surrounded Konoha, honing his skills to a point so sharp that he wondered if he could even call himself a man anymore. He had become a living, breathing weapon.

He only slept to replenish his chakra, but it could hardly be called resting. His fitful bouts of sleep were haunted by the lingering images from the masked man's genjutsu. Almost every night he woke gasping for air, suffocated by the horrors of what would happen if he failed in his ultimate mission. Those terrible images would be real. They would be his fault...his burden to carry for the rest of his life.

One night several weeks after his solitary and fateful meeting with Danzo, Itachi was too restless to stay in the silent house, and even tucking in Sasuke after his little brother kicked off all his covers in his sleep brought him no peace. Clad in his nightshirt and loose pants, he walked all the way to where the Naka River crossed into the Uchiha compound. It was a cloudy night, nearly moonless, but even in the dark, Itachi knew he was being followed. He also knew, from the chakra signature, exactly who it was.

Too weary to play games, Itachi stood on the grassy edge of the river bank and looked into the inky water as he announced, "I know you're there, Akane."

His fiancee emerged from the shadow of a nearby tree, wearing tight shorts and a long tunic top with slits up to her hips. The last time he'd seen her had been at the Tanabata festival, the same night he'd officially met Emiko.

It might as well have been a lifetime ago.

She crossed her arms over her nearly-flat chest, and Itachi couldn't help but recall Emiko's tender curves. He didn't even feel guilty for thinking of one girl when he was with another; of all the sins in his life, that one hardly seemed worth mentioning.

"Are you having trouble sleeping, too?" he asked the girl he was supposed to marry.

"No." A wind fanned her black hair around her shoulders. "It's my night to watch you."

Itachi nearly smiled. He appreciated honesty. "Of course."

Akane hesitated before taking a step towards him. "They ask me to," she added, "but they never tell me why."

"That's the way it works." He looked back at her. "I'm sorry."

She frowned. "For what?"

Itachi shook his head. "Everything."

When he turned his back on her, Akane moved forward again. "Itachi-sama!" She paused, waiting for his acknowledgement, but when none came, she covered the distance between them in the blink of an eye and threw her arms around him.

Itachi barely reacted to the sudden contact. His own arms remained at his sides as she buried her face between his shoulder blades. He felt nothing, he realized. Her body was warm and she smelled sweet, but there was no twist in his stomach or ache below his waist. Nothing that even just looking at her sister caused him to feel.

"Itachi-sama," she whispered into his shirt. "I love you." Gripping him tighter, she went on, "I've loved you since the first time I saw you!"

He barely heard himself above the rushing river water. "You were three," he reminded her.

She lifted her head. "You remember?!" Lowering her forehead back down to the fan on his shirt, Akane sniffed happily. "I knew you would."

Itachi played along, "You were with your mother." He felt Akane nod. "And your sister."

A moment passed. "I don't want to talk about her."

"Who?" Without warning, Itachi turned around to face her. Up close, he studied her expression before asking, "Your mother or your sister?"

Her right eye twitched ever so slightly upon his last word, but she chose to change the subject. "I will be the perfect wife for you, Itachi-sama. Everything I have done since that day was to make sure I would be the one they chose for you."

"To beat your sister?" He didn't realize he'd lowered his voice or that doing so was the first step in the long and sordid history of ninja seduction tactics...until he felt her shiver against him. "You can tell me the truth."

Akane looked back and forth between his eyes. "She's not..." Abruptly, she stopped.

"Not what?" he prodded.

His fiancee opened her her mouth to reply, but before she could, his name shattered the silence.

"Itachi."

Recognizing the voice as Shisui's, Itachi stepped away from Akane. He scanned the darkness, but saw nothing but shadows. Shisui was hiding himself. He had no idea why, but there must have been a very good reason.

Itachi looked down at Akane. "You say you love me."

She nodded. "I do."

"Then...I need you to leave."

"But..."

He covered her lips with his finger. "A wife wouldn't ask questions or hesitate to do what her husband asks."

Akane smiled softly and nodded. Taking a few steps back, she made a sign with her hands and vanished.

"She's gone," Shisui said when Itachi looked around. "She really would do anything for you."

"That's her fault, not mine." Itachi looked towards the unseen origin of his friend's voice. "Have you been charged with watching my watcher, Shisui, or just me?"

His friend chuckled, but it sounded off. "How long have we known each other, Itachi?" He didn't need an answer, so Itachi didn't reply. "I remember your first day at the Academy. A foot shorter than everyone else, but you were fearless. By the end of the first week, even the biggest jackasses in the class knew better than to start something with you."

Itachi waited for him to go on. "Being your friend seemed safer than being your enemy," Shisui eventually said. "I didn't realize I'd actually grow to like you."

"What do you want?" Itachi asked after a long moment.

"Straight to the point." Shisui's chuckle turned into a cough. "All right." He paused. "Shimura Danzo. Are you working for him?"

A strong wind swept through the trees, giving Itachi just enough time to make up his mind. He wasn't armed, but that wouldn't matter. Shisui's chakra was low. "With him," Itachi said. "Not for him." Another moment ticked by. "Have you come to kill me?"

"Kill you?" Shisui emerged from the shadows, one hand over his right eye. Blood oozed through his fingers and down his wrist. As he came into meager light, he lowered his hand, revealing an empty, bloody socket. "No, Itachi." In spite of his obvious pain, he smiled at his friend. "I need your help."

* * *

Time. It was the one mystery Itachi knew he would never unravel. How he could seemingly blink his eyes and suddenly the baby he'd sheltered during the Nine Tails attack was attending the Academy, yet on the other hand, how two days could feel like two years.

That's what it felt like since the night Shisui had come to him by the river. All Itachi could do was count the painful seconds and wait for the inevitable fall-out. He had everything planned; he knew exactly what he would say when they came for him, because how could they not? He wasn't just Shisui's best friend or the clan member who was being watched like a traitor...he was also the last person to be seen with Shisui.

Of course they would zero in on him. He just didn't expect how angry he would become when they did.

That anger stayed with him long after his father calmed the hot-headed men who had always respected, even feared Itachi, but never liked him. He could feel his blood boiling beneath his skin. One outburst wasn't enough to purge everything he'd pent up inside of himself for months. Was this what it felt like to house a tailed beast? He wasn't sorry that he'd never know; the heat of his fury threatened to burn away every other emotion in his heart.

So, Itachi ran. Leaping over buildings and electrical poles, he put as much distance between himself and the Uchiha compound as possible. When he reached the walls of the city, he kept going, throwing himself into the forest without hesitation.

Only birds and ninjas had a view like the one he was too angry to enjoy. From above the green canopy of leaves, the world looked so small. Malleable. How easy was it to start thinking like that…as if being stronger made him better. The powers of a shinobi were capable of doing such good, yet they were so often corrupted, abused and manipulated.

Was it just as arrogant of him to assume he could do anything about that?

Upon reaching a break in the trees, Itachi was about to follow the curve of the forest when movement in the clearing below caught his eye. It was probably nothing, but rather than be seen, he stopped and swung himself into the protection of the foliage. What he saw when he focused on the lone figure in the woods nearly made him fall from his perch.

He'd known that Emiko was a gifted healer, but having been led to believe that her ninjutsu was subpar, he'd always assumed she would have little skill in taijutsu. He couldn't have been more wrong. Mesmerized, he watched her move around the mossy clearing, shiruken flying, her fists making contact with invisible enemies. Her long hair was tied back from her face, but her efforts had loosened the ribbon holding it in place and loose locks fell around her face.

Although his heart was pounding, just seeing Emiko made Itachi feel calmer than he had in days. When she turned away, unknowingly denying him the comfort of seeing her face, he shifted in the branches to get a better look…and only a second later, a shiruken flew up, embedding in the wood beneath his feet.

Itachi stepped back, allowing himself to fall all the way to the ground. As he picked himself up, Emiko swung around, this time with a kunai in her hand. Substituting himself for a nearby log, Itachi moved behind her and reached out to touch her shoulder.

But Emiko was in battle mode. She grabbed his hand and yanked, swinging him around with more force that he would have thought she possessed in her slender body. He could have fought back when she threw him to the ground, but he lay still, allowing her to pin him down.

It was worth it when her eyes grew wide as she realized who had 'attacked' her. "Itachi!" she gasped, nearly out of breath. She started to scramble to her feet, to let him go, but he grasped her waist, holding her on top of him. A shadow of confusion crossed her face. "What are you…?"

He sat up without warning and she would have fallen back to the ground had he not held her still, her legs on either side of his lap. Staring into her questioning eyes, Itachi decided to do something he'd never done before.

He decided to stop thinking.

Her lips were warm and sweet with her sweat, but it took a long second of him kissing them before she began to respond. When she did, though, she held nothing back. Throwing her arms around his neck, she poured herself into the moment. It was all he could do to keep up. His hands moved from her back to her shoulders, finally tangling in her hair as their mouths ground together.

Maybe he pushed her back onto the carpet of moss and leaves. Maybe she pulled him down. Either way, the end result was the same. They landed in a tangle of limbs, neither of them willing to break their kiss, like they were afraid that if they broke apart, one of them would come to their senses and put an end to what they both wanted.

They gave no thought to the great and mighty Uchiha clan as they fumbled with their clothes. He didn't care what his father would say. She didn't care what would happen with her sister. They were young, but the world into which they had been born considered them old enough to fight. Old enough to die.

Certainly they were old enough to love.

* * *

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: An anonymous reviewer had some concerns about where I took Itachi and Emiko's relationship in the last chapter. I don't want to make too much of a fuss over one bad review, but I do want to say that while I acknowledge their very young ages, in all fairness, if Kishimoto can have Itachi slaughter dozens of his own family members at thirteen, why is it shocking for him to have sex at the same age? Horrific violence is totally okay, but lovemaking is taboo? Sorry, not in my world. That being said, I hope if you're here, you enjoy this next chapter:)

* * *

**Into the Dark**

**by Kristen Elizabeth**

* * *

_The time for sleep is now_

_It's nothing to cry about_

* * *

"Did I hurt you?"

Itachi's question smashed the silence that had fallen over the clearing. The sun had long since disappeared over the dark edge of the forest, but there was still enough light for him to see Emiko's face when he glanced over at her.

Her fingers brushed against his, a surprisingly innocent touch after what they'd just shared. "No."

Shifting onto his side, Itachi searched her face for any hidden traces of pain or regret. "Tell me the truth." Emiko lowered her eyes briefly, all the answer he needed. His throat stuck as he tried to swallow. "I'm sorry."

He thought he heard her whisper, "I'm not," but it could have been the strong wind that upset the trees above them.

Another long moment passed. "What do we do now?" she finally asked.

"We forget."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Itachi wished he could take them back. But she had to hear them and he had to say them. Otherwise, he would grab her hand and run as far away from Konoha as they could get.

"You could do that?" Her voice was so small, yet so incredulous.

"It'll be easy because we shouldn't have done this at all." Before he could change his mind, he sat up, turning his back on her as he reached for his dark blue shirt. "It was a mistake."

The carpet of leaves rustled as she sat up behind him, but Itachi didn't dare turn around. "Then…why did you…?"

"Maybe I wanted to make a choice for myself for once."

When he heard a soft, unexpected chuckle, he glanced back at her. Emiko's hand was at her throat, absentmindedly playing with the necklace of silver rings she always wore. Although her eyes were downcast, she nodded. "I know what you mean."

Itachi wanted to reach for her, but he'd already done too much damage. Still, he couldn't make himself get up and walk away from her. "Emiko." He hesitated. "You might have heard things about me recently. But…."

"They're not true." He frowned at her absolute certainty. She looked up, meeting his stare with her amber gaze. "That you killed your best friend. That you've betrayed our clan." Emiko lifted her slender shoulders. "I don't believe any of it."

"Why?" he demanded.

"Because I know you." She smiled softly. "And I love you."

His throat closed up again and it took him a long time to speak. "That will change." Her smile faded as he stood up. "I just want you to know…when that day comes, I want you to remember…" Itachi closed his eyes and shook his head. "No. That's asking too much."

"Itachi?"

When he opened his eyes again, she was standing in front of him, her hand reaching out to brush a black lock of hair back from his face. He stopped her by grabbing her wrist with enough force to make her wince.

"If I told you to leave Konoha tonight, would you do it?"

"Leave?" Emiko shook her head. "Where would I…?"

"Anywhere!" he cut her off. "Sand, Grass, Stone...it doesn't matter!" Itachi seized her other wrist and brought her hands together. "Would you do it?"

"Itachi…"

There was a rustle in the forest around them that was too big and too concentrated to be the wind. Itachi whipped his head to the side, searching for the source. That was when he felt it. The masked man's unmistakable chakra.

They were being watched.

Itachi released her and took a big step back, away from the sweet scent of her hair. "Never mind. Forget I said anything. Forget this."

Emiko crossed her arms over her stomach as if holding herself together. "I don't think I want to." In the dying light, he could see a tear slip down her cheek. "But I don't have a choice…do I?"

"None of us do." It took all of his strength, but Itachi turned around and started running. He didn't even think about stopping until he was certain that the masked man had followed him, and that Emiko, for the moment at least, was safe.

* * *

Itachi came to halt when he reached the entrance to the Muromachi shrine. He shouldn't have been out of breath, but he found himself struggling for each lungful of air. He suspected it had nothing to do with losing his virginity to the woman he loved, but rather how the sudden appearance of the masked man meant that he was out of time.

Standing as tall as possible, he addressed the unseen man. "How long were you watching us?"

The man appeared on top of the red torii. "Long enough." He withdrew his hand from his robe long enough to shake a finger at Itachi. "Tsk, tsk. There are some things children shouldn't do."

"I haven't been a child for a long time," he replied. "Isn't that why you chose me?"

In the time it took Itachi to blink, the man disappeared from his perch and reappeared on the ground right in front of him. Instead of answering, he simply stared at Itachi out of the one eyehole in his mask.

"The time has come." When it became clear that Itachi had no intention of answering, the masked man continued, "Tomorrow. At sunset. I trust you'll have settled your affairs by then?" Again, Itachi said nothing. "Would you rather I take care of your girlfriend?"

"No." Itachi's tired eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "Leave her to me."

"And that is why I chose you, Itachi."

As soon as the masked man was gone, Itachi slumped to his knees. Even though he'd watched all of the events unfold, he still couldn't believe everything that had happened over the past few months. Once, he had been the Uchiha's golden child. Now, with the hands that had been trained to bring honor to the clan, he would end them all.

All but one.

Itachi squeezed his eyes shut.

But it wouldn't be Emiko who was spared.

* * *

His parents were already asleep by the time Itachi arrived home, but a small stack of onigiri was waiting for him on the kitchen table. He tried to eat, but the rice felt like maggots in his mouth. He had to force himself to swallow.

His feet made no sound on the wooden floors as he made his way towards his room. As he passed the door to Sasuke's room, he paused. After a moment, he slid open the paper door and eased inside.

As always, Sasuke had kicked off all his covers and lay on outstretched on his futon. His little brother was sound asleep; his mouth was parted slightly and the soft sound of his breaths filled the room.

"Whatever happens tomorrow, neither of us is ever going to be the same," he said, keeping his voice low. "I wish I could tell you everything. I wish you could understand it." Itachi paused. "You will be a great ninja, Sasuke. You will hate me, no doubt, but that will fuel you. And one day…you will save us all."

With quick, almost undetectable motions, Itachi pulled the covers back up around Sasuke's wiry body. Before he left the room, he caught sight of the picture sitting on Sasuke's dresser. It was the last picture that would ever be taken of his family. For a brief moment, he considered grabbing it, but at the last second he couldn't bring himself to take everything away from his beloved brother.

* * *

When the sun set the next day, the blood began to flow.

The first people Itachi killed were the men who had come to his house, accusing him of murdering Shisui. He hated that each of them died believing they'd been right about him.

From there, he entered some sort of trance in which he took no note of who he encountered. If they were in the compound, they were an Uchiha, and they had to die. For the sake of the village. He had no tears, nothing to wash away the blood that spattered on his emotionless face.

It was only when he reached a familiar house that Itachi became aware of his surroundings. There was surprisingly little commotion considering the scale of the massacre, and apparently word had not reached Emiko's family. He scaled the outer wall easily and with blood dripping from his sword, he entered the house.

Akane and her parents were seated around the table, eating a meal that Emiko was serving. Upon seeing him, Emiko's mother screamed, her father leapt to his feet, and Akane froze.

Emiko stared at him, but he refused to meet her eyes.

"Itachi?!" Dropping any honorifics, Hideo thundered, "What's the meaning of this?"

"Why is she serving you?" Itachi pointed his blade at Emiko. "She is your daughter, not your servant." His tone was deadly cold. "Why do you make her serve you?"

"I don't," the man sputtered. Itachi lashed out, slicing him across the arm with the sharp blade. Blood soaked his sleeve as his wife screamed again. "It's her!" he cried, pointing to Isako. "She hates her."

"Why?"

"Because…" Hideo shook his head. "She's not her mother. Emiko…she belonged to…my mistress. We took her in after she died. "

It was all Itachi needed to hear. Not only had the man been unfaithful, he had brought his love-child into his home and allowed his wife to mistreat her. No amount of screaming stopped him from killing the man with one swipe across his jugular.

The blood was too much for Akane. She flew at Itachi, Sharingan blazing. But hers was no match for his and within seconds, the woman he had been promised to marry lay crumpled on the floor. He turned towards Isako. Moaning like the damned, she was almost too pathetic to kill.

"It wasn't her fault," Itachi told the older woman. "It was never her fault."

Isako's cries were cut off by a single blow.

The platter of fish Emiko had been holding fell from her hands and shattered on the floor. Itachi's head jerked up at the sound, and for the first time since he entered the house, he looked at his lover.

Although drained of all color and trembling violently, Emiko had not fainted during the slaughter of her so-called family. Twin tears streamed down her cheeks, but she managed to ask, "Am I next?"

Itachi's eyes glassed over. "I have a mission."

She nodded, barely moving her chin. "I'm glad it's you." Closing her eyes, she waited for death.

But all of a sudden, Itachi's sword felt too heavy to lift. Surrounded by carnage he had created, he simply couldn't do it. He could not erase Emiko from the world any more than he could kill Sasuke.

"Run." Emiko's eyes flew open. "Run," he repeated. "As fast as you can. As far as you can. Never come back. Never. Do you understand?"

"Itachi…"

"I said to run!" he shouted. "Now!"

If he looked at her any longer, he felt that his heart would stop. So Itachi never saw her flee from the house. It wasn't the last memory he wanted of her, anyway. By the time she lost herself in the forest, he had created a clone of her body amongst the real bodies of her family.

He wasn't entirely certain how long the clone would last or whether it would fool anyone, especially the masked man, but it would give Emiko a good head start and a chance to escape with her life.

Steeling himself and hardening his heart, Itachi started towards his own home.

* * *

To Be Continued


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Author's Notes: Thanks so much to everyone who is reading, reviewing and hopefully enjoying this story. I always love hearing what people think, so if you have a few seconds, a review would be greatly appreciated;)

* * *

**Into the Dark**

**by Kristen Elizabeth**

* * *

_We'll hold each other soon_

_In the blackest of rooms_

* * *

**Three Years Later**

It was too warm to wear a cloak, much less a heavy black one, but Itachi bore the discomfort in silence as he waited under the meager shade of a tree for his partner to finish his business behind a clump of bushes. He barely even felt the trickle of sweat that worked its way down his neck only to be absorbed in the collar of his blue mesh shirt. It was a minor annoyance and he was beyond caring about trivial things.

What could really bother someone who had slaughtered their own parents, been banished from their village and joined a dangerous criminal organization?

Before he could wade any deeper into his unwanted memories, Kisame rejoined him. One of the reasons Itachi tolerated the rogue Mist swordsman was because he didn't pollute the air with any unnecessary conversation. Without a word, they continued on their way towards the tiny town that would shelter them for the night.

Those were the dangerous times, the long periods of uneventful travel when his mind had plenty of time to wander. Perhaps he would have been better off partnering with someone who did chat incessantly; there would have been fewer opportunities for thoughts of Konoha, Sasuke, and Emiko.

She always appeared to him the same way, in her pink kimono, lounging in a sun-dappled clearing in the woods. He rarely let his imagination go much further, but sometimes he didn't want to stop himself from remembering how soft her skin felt against his or the sweet flavor of her mouth. Sometimes he woke in the middle of the night aching from the memory of their stolen moments.

But the nights he dreamed about his little brother were worse. Until the day they met again, Sasuke would always be seven years old. So small, but so determined. Alone. Orphaned by Itachi's hand.

"Will you want food?" Kisame's voice snapped Itachi back to attention. Blinking, he spotted the edge of the town less than five hundred yards ahead of them. They had covered quite a bit of distance while he lingered in the past.

He wasn't the least bit hungry, but he inclined his chin. Food was just fuel for his body; he took no pleasure in it anymore. Not when he would never have onigiri prepared by his mother ever again.

* * *

The town was so small and isolated that there seemed to be no shinobi guarding it. Kisame's sword didn't go unnoticed, but they were given a wide berth from the moment they passed through the main gates.

Itachi let Kisame choose where they would eat and, true to form, he picked a sushi restaurant that was bustling with patrons. They sat at one of the few remaining tables, garnering many stares from the other diners.

Picking up the menu card, Itachi skimmed over the list of available dishes. Nothing whet his appetite, but with the pencil provided, he checked off several items. As he tried to decide if he could manage to get down everything he'd chosen, a waitress approached them with hot tea and two cups.

"Good evening," she greeted them. "Welcome to Gaiyaku Sushi. What can I get for you?"

The sound of her voice shattered him. He didn't want to look, but he wasn't sure if it was because he didn't want her to see him or if he didn't want to be wrong if it wasn't her. But how could it not be her? That musical voice had whispered to him in his dreams for three years.

Unaware of his partner's inner turmoil, Kisame handed the girl his card and requested a few changes, giving Itachi plenty of time to make up his mind. Holding his breath, he looked up at the waitress.

It was Emiko.

Her hair was longer, and mostly covered by a red kerchief, but it was tied back at the base of her neck, like she couldn't be bothered to do anything else with it. There were dark circles under her eyes that rivaled his own, and while she'd clearly aged, she seemed too thin for her more mature frame.

None of that mattered. She was alive. She had survived. And some small part of his heart that he'd thought must have died with her suddenly sprung to life.

She didn't notice him staring at her as she scribbled down Kisame's requests. In fact, even when she turned towards him, her eyes never met his. He had the strangest feeling that it had been a very long time since Emiko had looked anyone in the eye.

Lowering his chin into the high collar of his cloak, Itachi handed her his card without a word. She took it, bowed slightly, and moved off to the other, busier tables.

Kisame watched her go. "Pretty little thing. Wonder if she's on the menu, too."

Itachi could have thrown the steaming contents of the tea pot directly into his blue face. Instead, he just poured himself a cup and took a scalding sip.

"I wouldn't be greedy," Kisame continued. "You could have a turn when I was through."

Slamming down his cup, Itachi stared down his partner in a way that only he could. After a moment, Kisame smirked, all of the apology Itachi could expect.

A different waitress delivered their food as the restaurant grew even busier. Itachi ate his sushi methodically, without tasting a single bite. Ever so often he would lift up his head and seek out Emiko, but not once did she ever glance his way. He should have been relieved.

He was strangely unsettled.

As it was Kisame's turn to pay, Itachi rose from the table when he finished eating. "I'll meet you at the ryokan." Without waiting for a reply, he slipped out of the restaurant.

Out in the night air, he debated simply heading to the nearest inn in order to put as much distance between him and Emiko as possible, but his feet wouldn't head in the right direction. He found himself circling the block, heading around the back to the restaurant's kitchen.

The door to the kitchen was covered with a screen to keep insects out, but it was open, allowing noise and light to spill out into the dark alley. Itachi had no idea what he was doing there; he just wanted to see her face one more time. And although he didn't deserve any favors from the universe, he got his wish a few minutes later when Emiko appeared at the door.

She'd abandoned her kerchief and she had a furoshiki-wrapped bento in her hands, both signs that she had finished her work for the evening and was about to head home.

Itachi could feel his heart beating in his throat. Hidden in the shadows, Emiko seemed to have no idea she was being watched. He frowned. Had she forgotten who she was after so much time and so much trauma?

She passed him without a word, and although she'd spent hours surrounded by dead fish, she still managed to smell like a summer breeze. He didn't even realize she'd stopped until she addressed him.

"Whoever you are, I have no money, and if you're after something more than money, there's a brothel on the other side of town, and the girls there don't carry knives."

He hadn't so much as cracked a smile in three years, so Itachi wasn't surprised that his chuckle sounded dusty. Emiko's eyes narrowed, but when he mustered up the courage to step into the light, they flew open. Shocked, she dropped her box and stumbled backwards.

"Itachi!" Her chest rose and fell rapidly, and it was only when he recognized the terror etched across her delicate features that he realized what must be going through her mind.

She thought he had come to finish his mission.

Actions spoke louder than words. Itachi bent down and picked up her bento. He offered it to her with both hands and a bow, a submissive position that he hoped would allay her fears.

Emiko took the box like a wounded animal might approach an outstretched hand and held it against her chest like a shield. When he lifted his head, he saw tears gleaming in her eyes.

"How did you find me?"

He could only think of one answer. "Luck."

"Itachi," she repeated, softer this time. "I couldn't…let myself imagine what might have…might have happened to you. But I hoped…" She trailed off. "I wanted to see you again…even if you were here to kill me."

"I'm not," he said around the lump in his throat.

Emiko nodded tightly. "All right." After a moment's hesitation, she drew in a breath and slowly released it. "Then…will you come with me? Please?"

Itachi didn't think about what he would tell Kisame. He just nodded.

* * *

He kept to the shadows as they made their way to the residential part of the village. Emiko never glanced back, but she never moved out of his line of sight. When they reached a small house, she paused at the porch. He joined her there a second later, just before she reached out and knocked softly on the door.

An old woman answered. "Hana-san, you're late."

Itachi glanced at Emiko, but said nothing. He could hardly fault her for concealing her true identity.

"I'm sorry, Rika-san," Emiko apologized with a bow. "I brought you some dinner."

The woman took the bento with a rueful smile and gestured at Emiko to come inside. It was only then that her elderly eyes narrowed in on Itachi, practically piercing him, as if she possessed the Sharingan herself. "Who is this?" She gave Emiko no chance to answer before she asked, "Is it him?"

Emiko glanced back at Itachi. "Yes. It is."

If he'd imagined for a moment that this admission might make Rika a bit friendlier, he would have been wrong. After he stepped inside, she closed the door and folded her arms with a contemptuous sniff. "It's about time you showed up."

Clearing her throat, Emiko sidestepped the woman's comment. "Was everything all right tonight?"

"Fine, fine." Rika waved her brown-spotted hand towards the back of the house. "Nothing out of the ordinary."

"Excuse me," Emiko said, heading off in the direction the woman had gestured, leaving Itachi to fend for himself.

"So. Where have you been?" the woman demanded.

He cleared his throat. "Around."

She sniffed again. "That's exactly the sort of answer I should have expected from a man…no…a boy who would…"

"Rika-san." Emiko gently cut her off as she came back into the main room, this time carrying something in her arms. "It's not his fault."

Itachi's knees nearly gave out from underneath him. It was a very small child cuddled up against Emiko's chest.

His child.

Emiko looked straight at him as she added, "He didn't know."

For a long moment, his mouth wouldn't work. An earthquake could have split the world apart right then, but it wouldn't have been powerful enough to make him tear his eyes away from the little boy. His son.

"His name is Masahiro." Emiko walked towards him; as she moved, the child stirred slightly, turning his head just enough to give Itachi a glimpse of his face. "I'm sorry I couldn't name him after you."

Itachi shook his head, hoping it would silently convey that he was glad she hadn't burdened their son with his cursed name. Swallowing heavily, he stared at the boy.

His son's hair was darker than Emiko's, but lighter than Itachi's. Rather than lie flat, it stuck out a bit in the back in a pattern so familiar that Itachi nearly lost his endless battle with his emotions. His son bore an almost painful resemblance to Sasuke as a toddler.

Emiko pressed a kiss against Masahiro's forehead and it was enough to make the boy open his sleep-heavy eyes. He blinked a few times and whimpered, "Kaa-chaa?"

"I'm here, koibito," she murmured. "Go back to sleep." The child's long black lashes touched his chubby cheeks only seconds later. Emiko lifted her chin to look up at Itachi. "I don't need anything from you. I just wanted you to know he existed." She paused. "You deserved to know."

"E…" He stopped himself from using her real name just in time. "I'm sorry."

Rika stepped forward just then. "Make him hold the boy, Hana-san. That's the only way men learn."

Emiko's smile was forced. "We're just leaving, Rika-san. Thank you for everything. We'll see you tomorrow."

Just before she closed the door behind them, Rika sniffed again. "If you're still in town tomorrow."

Out in the cool night air, Emiko held Masahiro even tighter. "I don't know what you were apologizing for just now, but if it was for him…" She shook her head. "Don't you dare. He is the only reason I am standing here right now."

"I'm sorry you had to do all of this alone."

When she blinked, he could see tears collecting her lashes. "Why are you here, Itachi? What do you want?"

He knew his answer, but it took him a moment to form the words. "I want you."

* * *

Emiko's apartment sat over a ramen stand. As soon as they arrived, she put Masahiro in his crib and closed the bedroom door, leaving it open just enough to hear him if he cried. As soon as they were alone, there was no more hesitating. He let himself fall into her arms, not for physical release, although when it happened, it was a thousand times better than he remembered, but just for human contact, something he had denied himself for three long years.

There would be consequences for disappearing without telling his partner where he would be, but Itachi would deal with them when they came. Right then, he was skin to skin with the only woman he had ever loved…the mother of his child…and he just couldn't give a damn about the Akatsuki.

He barely talked, but Emiko filled the silence, telling him about everything that had happened to her since the night of the massacre. She spoke little of her own experiences, but she told him, in great detail, of Masahiro's birth, his first words, his first steps.

It suddenly struck Itachi that an hour earlier, he'd been nothing but a missing nin, a rogue assassin who had slaughtered his entire clan. Now, he was a lover. A father.

But as much as he wanted to wrap himself up in this new world, there was no escape from the reality of the past.

He felt the question coming before she posed it. There was a pause, a subtle shift in the mood between them. He braced himself. "Why did you do it?" Lying against his side, she quietly asked, "Why did they have to die?"

"I can't answer that," he said to the dark ceiling above them. "I made a choice and now I have to live with it." He ran his fingers through her hair. "Why don't you hate me for it?"

"I think I did…just a little. When I found out I was pregnant. But then he was born and he was so perfect…" She kissed his chest. "How could I hate you after that?"

Long minutes passed in perfect silence. Finally, Itachi said, "I can't stay. And I can't take you with me. Either of you. Especially him." He turned his head to look towards the bedroom where his son lay sleeping. "Staying away from him is the only way I can protect him."

"I know."

Itachi rolled her onto her back and looked down at her. "But I promise you….I will see you both again someday."

Cupping his cheek in her hand, Emiko brushed her thumb across his lips. "We'll be waiting."

She watched him dress in the dark, but before he left, she jumped to her feet and ran to him. "Itachi!" Reaching behind her head, Emiko unclasped her silver necklace and refastened it around his neck. The silver circles felt warm against his collarbone. Warmed by her body.

"I'll never take it off."

It was a promise he intended to keep.

* * *

TBC


End file.
